According to the plan, on March 19, the Hanoi People’s Court held a first-instance trial for 15 defendants in the case at Tan Hoang Minh Hotel Trading and Services Limited Company (abbreviated as Tan Hoang Minh Company).
Prior to the trial, the prosecution authorities received petitions from more than 1,200 investors – the victims in the case – requesting a reduction in sentences for the defendants.
In the petitions, these 1,200 investors requested the Court and the Prosecutor’s Office to consider reducing the criminal liability of the defendants, with the reason that all the defendants had actively cooperated with the investigative agencies, sincerely confessed, admitted their wrongdoings, and had good personal backgrounds.
In the case of the two defendants Do Anh Dung (Chairman of the Board of Directors, General Director of Tan Hoang Minh Company) and Do Hoang Viet (Dung’s son, Deputy General Director of Tan Hoang Minh Company), the victims requested the prosecution authorities to consider applying special leniency policies because within a short period of time, they had made full efforts to fully compensate the investors’ bond money (over 8,600 billion VND) to the State Treasury.
These victims believe that the post-consequence rectification actions of the defendants Do Anh Dung and Do Hoang Viet not only demonstrate their repentance and confession but also help the victims relieve their worries and build trust in the competent authorities.
The defendants in the case.
In this case, Do Anh Dung, Do Hoang Viet, and other defendants were indicted for the charge of “Fraudulent appropriation of property” under Article 174, Clause 4, Point a – Criminal Code.
The 8 defendants from Tan Hoang Minh Company are:
Phung The Tinh (former Director of the Financial – Accounting Center, concurrently Director of the Financial – Accounting Division),
Hoang Quyet Chien (Deputy Director of the Financial – Accounting Center, concurrently Director of the Financial – Accounting Division),
Le Thi Mai (former Deputy Head of the Capital Source Division), Vu Le Van Anh (Deputy Director of the Capital Source Division),
Nguyen Van Khan (Deputy Head of the Budget Division of the Financial – Accounting Center),
Le Van Thinh (Deputy General Director),
Tran Hong Son (Deputy General Director of Tan Hoang Minh Company),
Nguyen Khoa Duc (Assistant to the Deputy General Director of Tan Hoang Minh Company, Director of Winter Palace Joint Stock Company).
The other 5 defendants are:
Nguyen Manh Hung (Chairman of the Board of Directors of Ngoi Sao Viet Real Estate Investment Limited Liability Company),
Bui Thi Ngoc Lan (former Director of Nam Viet Accounting and Financial Consulting Services Limited Liability Company Branch – Northern Region),
Le Van Do (General Director of Hanoi Accounting and Accounting Limited Liability Company),
Phan Anh Hung (former Deputy General Director of CPA Hanoi Company – Saigon Branch),
Nguyen Thi Hai (former Deputy General Director of CPA Hanoi Company).
Over 20 lawyers participated in defending the legitimate rights and interests of the defendants.
In relation to the case, more than 6,630 investors identified as victims were summoned to the Court.
According to the indictment, due to financial difficulties, to have money for maintaining the working machine, business activities, investment, and payment of debts of Tan Hoang Minh Group, from June 2021 to March 2022, defendant Do Anh Dung unified the orientation and through his son Do Hoang Viet’s direction, he authorized the co-defendants acting under the right to use legal entities of 3 companies (Ngoi Sao Viet Real Estate Investment Limited Liability Company, Soleil Hotel and Investment Joint Stock Company, Winter Palace Joint Stock Company) to issue 9 separate corporate bond packages with a total issuance value of 10,030 billion VND to mobilize money for Tan Hoang Minh Group.
In order to issue the bonds, the defendants colluded to carry out many acts, deceptive means, legitimate conditions, issuance documents, bidding procedures, bond transactions: creating a false business activity by signing cooperation agreements, deposits, share purchases… without real existence within the internal of the Group.
The defendants colluded with the auditing firm, legitimately accepted the financial statements of the 3 issuing companies, making full opinions to meet the conditions for bond issuance.
The Prosecutor’s Office determined that the defendants had used the assets of those “fake” cooperation investment contracts as collateral for the bonds, from which they built trust, used legal entities and the Tan Hoang Minh brand to mobilize and misappropriate more than 8,643 billion VND from 6,630 investors. These amounts were used by the defendants for various purposes, not for the purpose of bond issuance.
