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Vietnamese tycoon Truong My Lan can avoid execution for orchestrating a $12 billion fraud if she repays three-quarters of the embezzled money, a court ruled Tuesday.
The chairman of property developer Van Thinh Phat Group was sentenced to death in April after being found guilty of embezzling VND304 trillion from Vietnam’s Saigon Joint Stock Commercial Bank (SCB). She was also found guilty of abuse of power and bribing government officials.
A court in Ho Chi Minh City rejected her appeal against the death sentence, citing the “particularly serious consequences” of the corruption case, the country’s biggest financial fraud, Vietnamese state media said.
But the court took note of a Vietnamese law that allows her sentence to be commuted to life imprisonment if she can repay at least 75 percent of the embezzled amount during her death sentence.
During a hearing last month, the prosecutor had asked her to return at least $11 billion. They argued against overturning the death penalty, saying her actions have resulted in “unprecedented” losses.
The corruption case against Lan is part of a broader crackdown on corruption in Vietnam by the ruling Communist Party, which has resulted in the arrest of hundreds of government officials and the prosecution of several businessmen.
The “blazing furnace” – as the crackdown in Vietnam is being called – has also led to a sharp slowdown in government activities, including project approvals and licenses, as officials fear being caught up in the anti-corruption campaign.
The crackdown came as Vietnam became a global manufacturing hub, with companies relocating factories from China amid escalating tensions between Washington and Beijing.
Lan, 68, is the most high-profile businessman to be prosecuted in the campaign. She could seek a review of Tuesday’s court ruling or a presidential pardon.
She has denied wrongdoing, disputed the amount she allegedly embezzled from the SCB and asked the court for leniency during the appeal process. Lan has also said that the money she allegedly embezzled from the bank was in fact spent on restructuring the bank.
“This case has damaged the dreams, hopes and physical strength of myself and dozens of people here. That was the most terrible experience for me,” she said during an appeal hearing last month, state media reported.
Lan’s lawyers told the court that the assets confiscated from the tycoon were enough to offset losses at SCB. They also said foreign investors have shown interest in reviving some of Lan’s major real estate projects, which could then help offset some of the losses.
However, prosecutors say it is not possible to determine the value of many of Lan’s assets.
“The losses in this case were extremely large and unprecedented in history. It is unclear when these losses will be fully compensated,” they said during the appeal hearing.
Vietnamese officials said Lan embezzled billions through illegal control of SCB, using fake companies to take out loans and bribe government officials. There are 85 other people charged in the case, including her husband, niece and central bank officials.
Government authorities have previously said that SCB provided loans worth more than $44 billion to Van Thinh Phat and other Lan-controlled companies between 2012 and 2022, accounting for 93 percent of the bank’s total loans disbursed. SCB was placed under central bank control after Lan’s arrest.
Lan was also sentenced to life imprisonment in a second trial for money laundering, fraudulent appropriation of assets through the issuance of bonds and illegal cross-border money transfers.