Truong My Lan is accused of illegally transferring $4.5 billion in the latest development in the country’s biggest fraud case.
A Vietnamese real estate tycoon who was sentenced to death in the country’s biggest fraud case ever faces new charges for crimes including money laundering.
Truong My Lan, head of the Van Thinh Phat development company, was found by police to have illegally transferred about $4.5 billion into and out of the country, state media said on Thursday.
The Ministry of Public Security recommended that Lan be charged with money laundering, property theft and illegal currency transport, the state-run Thanh Nien newspaper said.
Lan was sentenced to death in April after a high-profile trial in Ho Chi Minh City where he was found guilty of embezzlement, bribery and violating banking regulations.
Mr Lan, 67, was found to have illegally controlled Saigon Joint Stock Commercial Bank (SCB) from 2012 to 2022 to siphon off funds through thousands of shell companies.
Lan’s husband, Hong Kong billionaire Eric Chu Nap Kee, was sentenced to nine years in prison for his role in the fraud.
Lan, who denied the charges against him, appealed his death sentence.
Prosecutors claimed the scheme caused a total of $27 billion in damage, equivalent to 6% of the country’s economy.
Lan is one of the most high-profile business figures caught in the corruption crackdown known as the Blazing Furnace.
The anti-corruption campaign, which began in 2016 but has gathered pace in recent years, has been linked to the resignation of two presidents and resulted in hundreds of public officials being disciplined or jailed.
