The Van Thinh Phat case and millions of USD in bribes found in styrofoam boxes.

As reported by VietNamNet , the Investigation Police Department of the Ministry of Public Security has just issued its conclusion on the investigation of the Van Thinh Phat case and recommended the prosecution of 86 defendants on 7 charges.

According to the investigation's conclusions, during the construction, approval, and implementation of the restructuring plan for Saigon Commercial Bank (SCB) in 2017-2018, conducted by the Banking Supervision and Inspection Agency (BSSA) under the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), three inspection teams worked with SCB. The investigation concluded that, among these three inspection teams, the inter-agency inspection team in 2017-2018 conducted a comprehensive inspection of SCB.

truong my lan.jpeg — Ms. Truong My Lan instructed that money be sent as a thank-you gift to Ms. Do Thi Nhan, former Director of the Banking Inspection and Supervision Department II.

The inspection results provide a basis for accurately assessing the situation, the actual state of credit, bad debts, and debt structure of SCB Bank according to the restructuring plan for the period 2015-2019, as well as the share ownership, control, and management at SCB by Ms. Truong My Lan of Van Thinh Phat Group.

This was to allow the Government and the State Bank of Vietnam to have appropriate solutions and measures to handle the situation. However, during the inspection process at SCB, individuals who were leaders of the Banking Supervision Agency, the head and deputy head of the inspection team, and members of the inspection team committed serious violations, receiving money, gifts, and material benefits from SCB to cover up, conceal, and report dishonest and incomplete inspection results to the State Bank of Vietnam.

This left the State Bank of Vietnam without sufficient information and documents to advise and direct the handling of SCB's violations and prevent the criminal acts of Ms. Truong My Lan and her accomplices.

The story of "keeping quiet and taking the money"

In connection with the Van Thinh Phat case, Ms. Do Thi Nhan, former Director of the Banking Supervision and Inspection Department II under the Banking Supervision and Inspection Agency (State Bank of Vietnam), has been recommended for prosecution on charges of accepting bribes.

According to the investigation's conclusions, Ms. Nhan was the head and director of the inspection team, bearing primary responsibility for the inspection results of SCB Bank.

During the inspection process at SCB Bank, Ms. Do Thi Nhan received bribes totaling $5.2 million through SCB leaders, namely Mr. Dinh Van Thanh (former Chairman) and Mr. Vo Tan Hoang Van (former General Director).

Specifically, around March 2018, Mr. Thanh and Mr. Van went to Hanoi and visited Ms. Nhan's office at the Banking Supervision Agency headquarters, located at 25 Ly Thuong Kiet Street (Hanoi). They gave Ms. Nhan a bag of cherries and another bag containing 200,000 USD. Ms. Nhan took the money home and kept it.

From October to December 2018, during the period of drafting the inspection report, seeking opinions from relevant ministries and agencies, and subsequently issuing the inspection report at SCB Bank, Mr. Vo Tan Hoang Van and Mr. Nguyen Tuan Nam (Mr. Van's driver) brought styrofoam boxes containing USD to Ms. Nhan three times.

After each time the money was delivered to her home, Ms. Nhan asked Mr. Vo Tan Hoang Van what the money was for. Mr. Van said it was money from Ms. Truong My Lan as a thank you for Ms. Nhan's help and support to SCB during the inspection process.

After receiving the money, Ms. Nhan hid it in her private bedroom at her apartment in the Mandarin apartment building (Trung Hoa, Cau Giay, Hanoi), and did not use it for anything.

In December 2022, after the Investigation Police Department of the Ministry of Public Security initiated a case of fraud and appropriation of assets at Van Thinh Phat Group and related units, Ms. Nhan divided the money into two parts. The defendant took 2.6 million USD and deposited it with relatives in Nam Dinh City. The remaining money was put into a metal box, locked, and taken to her half-brother's house, where she hid it in a wardrobe in his bedroom. Ms. Nhan locked the wardrobe and kept the key.

Ms. Nhan asserted that those who received the money from her were completely unaware of its origin because they did not ask, and Ms. Nhan absolutely did not say anything.

The younger brother confirmed that Ms. Nhan had asked him to store a metal box in a cupboard at her private residence and that he had voluntarily handed over the box. The amount recovered was 3 million USD. The relative in Nam Dinh admitted that Ms. Nhan had brought money to him twice, once 1.4 million USD and once 1.2 million USD. This person was completely unaware of the source of the money.

Later, Ms. Nhan contacted Mr. Van several times to return the money, but he never came to collect it.

At the investigative agency, Ms. Nhan admitted that Ms. Truong My Lan had asked her to assist SCB in promptly issuing the inspection report.

The investigating agency alleges that Ms. Nhan covered up, concealed, and provided dishonest and incomplete reports on the inspection results to the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), leading to the SBV lacking sufficient information and documents to advise and direct the handling of SCB Bank's violations, prevent the criminal acts of Truong My Lan and her accomplices, and cause exceptionally serious consequences.

The defendant Nhan instructed subordinates to omit data on bad debts totaling nearly 38,000 billion VND, provisions for risk reserves exceeding 18,700 billion VND, and the reversal of accrued receivables exceeding 3,093 billion VND for three projects (Mui Den Do, 6A, and Royal Garden)...; with the aim of benefiting SCB Bank to legitimize these figures in the inspection team's report, the draft inspection conclusion, and the report to the Government.

Ms. Nhan was also accused of making dishonest, incomplete, and misleading reports on the inspection results, downplaying the violations and facilitating the continued restructuring of SCB Bank.

Source