Van Thinh Phat case: Ms. Truong My Lan's accomplice can no longer keep calm

The Van Thinh Phat case has recently had a new development. Some accomplices of Ms. Truong My Lan (former Chairwoman of the Board of Directors of Van Thinh Phat Group) have attitudes completely opposite to the previous trial.

Accordingly, on September 19, the Ho Chi Minh City People's Court opened the second phase of the first-instance trial of the case at Van Thinh Phat Group Joint Stock Company (Van Thinh Phat Group). This trial continued to clarify the illegal acts of Ms. Truong My Lan (former Chairwoman of the Board of Directors of Van Thinh Phat Group) and 33 accomplices.

According to the Supreme People's Procuracy's a.ccusation, the defendants committed the crimes of: Fraudulent appropriation of property, M.oney laundering and illegal transportation of currency across the border. At the beginning of the trial, the panel of judges examined the background of Ms. Truong My Lan - who was a.ccused of all three crimes above. At this time, she maintained a calm attitude, clearly and coherently answering questions about her personal background.

Specifically, Ms. Lan stated that during the first-instance trial that lasted from March 5 to April 11 at the Ho Chi Minh City People's Court, she was "accused" of three crimes: Embezzlement of property, Violation of regulations on banking activities, and Bribery.

Similar to the previous trial, defendant Chu Lap Co - husband of Ms. Truong My Lan (a.ccused of "Money Laundering"), continued to be assisted by an English interpreter to ensure he could understand and participate in the questioning process.

During the trial, both Mr. Chu Lap Co and Truong Hue Van - niece of Ms. Truong My Lan (a.ccused of "Fraudulent appropriation of property") were calm and did not show much emotion when asked by the panel of judges.

Notably, in contrast to the calmness of Truong My Lan, her husband and niece, some accomplices in the case could not keep calm. Typically, defendant Thai Thi Thanh Thao (former director of Wholesale customer service at SCB Bank, Saigon branch; a.ccused of "Fraudulent appropriation of property"), defendant To Thi Anh Dao (former Deputy General Director of Van Thinh Phat Investment Group Joint Stock Company; a.ccused of "Illegal transportation of currency across the border") burst into tears when questioned.

The presiding judge had to repeatedly remind the defendants to remain calm throughout the trial. According to the indictment, defendant Thai Thi Thanh Thao directed Tran Thi Thuy Ai (former treasury controller and warehouse keeper of SCB Bank, Saigon branch) and transaction officers of SCB Bank, Saigon branch to order deposits/transfers/withdrawals in the cash flow without creating bonds issued by An Dong and Sunny World Companies to help Truong My Lan and her accomplices issue bonds of An Dong and Sunny World Companies to appropriate more than VND 26,500 billion from 30,744 victims.

Defendant To Thi Anh Dao was a.ccused of being the manager of Helios Company to receive m.oney from abroad to Vietnam and vice versa through a "fake" loan contract between Helios Company and the overseas company. Under the direction of Truong My Lan, To Thi Anh Dao carried out fake procedures for Helios Company to receive 40 million USD from abroad and at the same time transfer 40 million USD abroad.

In addition, the chief accountant of VIPD Company signed 2 payment authorizations to transfer the amount of 445,133 billion VND from VIPD Company to Blue Pearl Company so that Blue Pearl Company could convert it into 19.6 million USD to transfer abroad to Leader Vission Company.

The Supreme People’s Procuracy a.ccused To Thi Anh Dao of helping Truong My Lan illegally transport more than 99 million USD across the border. The trial is expected to last one month to complete the questioning process and reach a conclusion on the responsibility of each individual involved.

Zhang Huiyun sobbed and begged the court to reduce Ms. Zhang My Lan's d.eath sentence Trí Nhi10:43:38 05/04/2024Defendants Zhang Huiyun and Zhou Lijie said their last words in tears, and she asked the court to commute Ms. Zhang Meilan's sentence to escape the d.eath penalty. Both begged the council to consider and lightly sentence the guilty fellow, sobbing apologetically at the horseshoe.