Vietnam's Truong My Lan Loses Appeal; Must Repay $9 Billion to Avoid Execution

Dec 3, 2024, 06:31 AM

Vietnamese property tycoon Truong My Lan, founder of Ho Chi Minh City-based Van Thinh Phat Holdings Group, has lost her appeal against the death penalty for masterminding the country's largest-ever fraud scandal. The 68-year-old was convicted of embezzling $12 billion, including orchestrating a $1.2 billion bond fraud that devastated thousands of investors. The Supreme People's Court of Ho Chi Minh City upheld her death sentence, stating that the damages caused were "enormous and have extremely serious consequences," and found no circumstances to reduce her sentence. However, under Vietnamese law, her sentence could be commuted to life imprisonment if she repays 75% of the embezzled funds, estimated at $9 billion.