Unveiling the Masterminds: The Arrest of the Trio Behind Over 1,000 Scams in Just 10 Months

The Ha Tinh Cyber Security and High-Tech Crime Prevention Division (Ha Tinh Police) announced that they have successfully broken a case, arresting three individuals for “fraudulent appropriation of property” online. The operation also resulted in the seizure of exhibits related to the case.

In September 2023, the Cyber Security and High-Tech Crime Prevention Division detected several Facebook accounts frequently posting information about buying and selling motorcycles and scooters at low prices on pages and groups such as “Ha Tinh Used Motorcycle Trading” and “Ha Tinh Motorcycle Market.” These activities showed signs of fraud, targeting many people in Ha Tinh and across the country.

To evade detection, the perpetrators operated with great sophistication, frequently changing their phone SIM cards, bank cards, and locations. They also used VPN software to change their IP addresses when logging into “fake” accounts, making the investigation and verification process more challenging.

Additionally, the suspects often changed their residence, opting for densely populated areas like high-rise apartments and worker dormitories in industrial zones.

Facing this complex situation, the Ha Tinh Police Department directed the Cyber Security and High-Tech Crime Prevention Division to coordinate with the Huong Khe District Police to establish a specialized task force to investigate and clarify the situation.

Under the direct guidance of the Ha Tinh Police Department, the task force deployed multiple reconnaissance missions to verify and gather information related to the fraud. After a thorough investigation, it was determined that the suspects used Facebook accounts to post information and tag Zalo accounts, “Hoang Nam Moto” and “Nam Hieu Moto,” along with a bank account in the name of Nguyen Hoai Nam, as part of their fraudulent scheme. They succeeded in defrauding numerous individuals across the nation of large sums of money in the form of deposits for purchasing motorcycles and scooters.

By early May 2024, based on the collected evidence, the task force identified two victims, Ms. H. T. H., born in 1987, residing in Huong Khe town, Huong Khe district, and Mr. V. T. V., born in 1975, residing in Duc Thanh commune, Mo Duc district, Quang Ngai province. The total amount of money they lost to the fraud was 34.5 million VND.

With the gathered evidence and the victims’ statements, the task force formed two working groups and proceeded to Hanoi and Hai Phong to apprehend the suspects: Nguyen Tien Thanh, born in 2001, and Nguyen Manh Thu, born in 2001, both residing in Doi Binh commune, Ung Hoa district, Hanoi. They were caught in room 3014 of the HH4B building in the Linh Dam apartment complex. The third suspect, Le Tuan Anh, born in 1993, residing in An Tho commune, An Lao district, Hai Phong, was also arrested.

During the emergency search of the suspects’ residences, the police seized a computer set, two wifi routers, nine mobile phones, one bank card, three SIM cards, 590 self-made templates with content such as “Vehicle Purchase Agreement” and “Warehouse Withdrawal Slip,” along with other objects and documents that the suspects had prepared in advance to facilitate their criminal activities.

At the police station, the suspects confessed to their crimes. The Criminal Investigation Police of Huong Khe District issued a decision to prosecute the three suspects for “fraudulent appropriation of property” according to Clause 1, Article 174 of the Criminal Code.

Employing the above methods, from September 2023 to July 2024, the suspects perpetrated more than 1,000 fraud cases, defrauding Ha Tinh residents and people nationwide of approximately 10 billion VND.

Currently, the Ha Tinh Cyber Security and High-Tech Crime Prevention Division is coordinating with the Huong Khe District Police to further investigate and expand the case and complete the dossier for handling the suspects according to the law.