Vietnamese prosecutors on Tuesday demanded a death sentence for Truong My Lan, mastermind behind the country’s largest-ever financial fraud case, state media reported.
Lan, chairwoman of developer Van Thinh Phat Holdings Group, faces trial in economic hub Ho Chi Minh City on charges of defrauding greater than $12 billion, or about 3 percent of the country’s gross domestic product.
The trial, scheduled to last until the tip of April, is a component of a campaign against corruption that the leader of Vietnam’s ruling Communist Party, Nguyen Phu Trong, has vowed for years to stamp out, though with few tangible results.
“Lan pleaded not guilty and showed no remorse,” Thanh Nien newspaper quoted prosecutors as saying.
“The consequences are extremely serious and irreversible, and Truong My Lan must be punished severely and removed from society,” prosecutors said.
Lan’s lawyer couldn’t immediately be reached for comment Tuesday.
According to investigators, Lan and her accomplices are accused of siphoning 304 trillion dong ($12.46 billion) from Saigon Joint Stock Commercial Bank (SCB), which Lan effectively controlled through dozens of proxies.
Prosecutors also accused the group of causing one other VND 193 trillion in damages, of which greater than VND 129 trillion was collected interest on loans taken out.
Total financial losses within the case amounted to VND498 trillion ($20 billion), in line with the report.
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According to investigators, from early 2018 to October 2022, when SCB received state aid after its deposits were exhausted, Lan misappropriated large sums by arranging illegal loans to shell corporations.
Investigators say she is accused of bribing officials to disregard her actions, including paying an alleged $5.2 million to a senior central bank inspector.
The government said three independent audit firms committed violations within the SCB case, MP Pham Van Hoa said on Monday, without identifying them.
This comment was addressed to Finance Minister Ho Duc Phoc, the federal government added in a press release.
Phoc blamed several recent criminal cases on audits, adding that “deliberate collusion and violations” by auditors had not been ruled out.
Public documents show that leading global firms akin to Ernst & Young and KPMG didn’t raise concerns in regards to the bank of their audits.
