A Vietnamese court handed down a death sentence to real estate mogul Truong My Lan on Thursday for her involvement in a financial fraud case worth 304 trillion dong ($12.46 billion), the largest in the country’s history, as reported by state media.
The trial, which commenced on March 5 and concluded earlier than anticipated, was part of an anti-corruption campaign led by Vietnam’s Communist Party leader Nguyen Phu Trong, who has long promised to eradicate corruption, albeit with limited success.
Following a trial in Ho Chi Minh City, Lan, the chairwoman of the Van Thinh Phat Holdings Group, was convicted of embezzlement, bribery, and violations of banking regulations.
Dubbed the “blazing furnace,” the crackdown has resulted in the prosecution or resignation of numerous senior state officials and prominent business figures.
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In 2022, Vietnamese stocks experienced a $40 billion decline following a series of major corporate arrests, shaking investor confidence at a critical juncture for the rapidly expanding economy.
Lan’s legal representatives were unavailable for immediate response.
Lan and her associates faced allegations of diverting over 304 trillion dongs from Saigon Joint Stock Commercial Bank (SCB), which she essentially managed through numerous proxies, as per investigators.
Between early 2018 and October 2022, when the state intervened to rescue SCB following a surge in deposit withdrawals, Lan allegedly misappropriated substantial amounts by orchestrating illicit loans to shell companies, investigators claimed.
A family member informed Reuters that Lan intends to challenge the verdict before it was handed down.
CNN