Former Executives of Phú Việt TÃn Company Sentenced to Suspended Prison Terms
The People’s Court of Dong Nai province has sentenced three former executives of Phú Việt TÃn Company to suspended prison terms for “Forging Documents of Agencies and Organizations.”
From left to right: Nguyen Thuan, Phung Thanh Son, and Do Thi Thuy Trang during the trial on June 27th
The defendants, Nguyen Thuan (born 1974, former General Director of Phú Việt TÃn Company), Phung Thanh Son (born 1974, in charge of business), and Do Thi Thuy Trang (born 1982, accountant), were sentenced to 36 months, 30 months, and 24 months in prison, respectively, with a probation period.
Change of Charges for the Defendants
During the trial, the representative of the Provincial Procuracy maintained the prosecution against the defendants for “Abuse of Trust to Appropriate Property.”
The Procuracy recommended a sentence of 5-6 years in prison for Nguyen Thuan, 30-36 months in prison with a probation period for Phung Thanh Son, and 24-30 months in prison with a probation period for Do Thi Thuy Trang, all for the charge of “Abuse of Trust to Appropriate Property.”
However, the Court changed the charges to “Forging Documents of Agencies and Organizations” and reduced the sentences, considering that the defendants’ act of forging 175 contracts to earn a difference of nearly VND 6 billion aimed to find funds for building welfare facilities for officers and employees.
The Court recognized that the defendants’ actions constituted the crime of forging documents of agencies and organizations, specifically by forging deposit contracts between Phú Việt TÃn Company and its customers. After appropriating the money, the defendants did not flee, nor did they intentionally refuse to return the money or use it for illegal purposes.
Intense Debate among Lawyers
During the trial, the lawyer representing the rights and obligations of Phú Việt TÃn Company stated that in June 2018, when a customer requested to change the contract, the company discovered that the project purchase contracts had been forged.
In June 2019, Phú Việt TÃn Company organized a members’ meeting, where Nguyen Thuan admitted to re-signing the contracts and receipts to benefit from the price difference. At the meeting, Thuan promised to compensate for the price difference soon. However, when Thuan was transferred to another position, the issue had not been resolved, leading the company to file a complaint with the Dong Nai Provincial Police.
According to the lawyer, the decision to sell 583 land plots was made unilaterally by Thuan, without the company’s approval.
The representative of Phú Việt TÃn Company emphasized that Thuan, as the General Director, kept the money outside the company’s books and used it at his discretion without the company’s knowledge. Out of the VND 235 billion kept outside the books, Thuan had only returned a portion, and VND 102 billion was still outstanding.
At the trial, Phú Việt TÃn Company requested the Court to sentence the defendants appropriately and demanded that Nguyen Thuan return the VND 6 billion and the remaining VND 102 billion he owed to the company.
The company’s representative expressed dissatisfaction with the Court’s decision, stating that the sentences were not stringent enough and ignored the recommendations of the Provincial Procuracy. They announced their intention to appeal the verdict.
Case Background
According to the indictment, in 2013, the People’s Committee of Dong Nai province decided to allocate land to Phú Việt TÃn Company to invest in the construction of the A1-C1 Residential Area in Bau Ham 2, Thong Nhat district.
In 2017, Phú Việt TÃn Company implemented phase 3 of the project, with a total of 590 land plots.
From June 2017 to June 2018, Nguyen Thuan directly instructed the sale of more than 580 land plots, with a total value of over VND 590 billion. Customers made deposits totaling nearly VND 467 billion.
Nguyen Thuan deposited only VND 232 billion into the company’s account, keeping the remaining VND 235 billion outside the company’s books. He then colluded with Son and Trang to forge contracts, receipts, and fake customer signatures on 175 contracts and receipts, with values lower than the actual amounts received, to appropriate more than VND 6 billion.
Indictment of Tran Quà Thanh and 2 Daughters
The accused defendant Tran Qui Thanh, former director of Tan Hiep Phat Trading and Services Company Limited, along with his two daughters and accomplices, are facing charges of credit abuse and embezzlement of over 1,000 billion dong from four individuals.
