Beverage tycoon Tran Qui Thanh receives 8-year prison sentence for $41M fraud

His daughters, Tran Uyen Phuong, 43, deputy CEO of Tan Hiep Phat, and Tran Ngoc Bich, 40, also faced legal consequences in connection with the crime. The People's Court of Ho Chi Minh City announced on Thursday that Phuong received a four-year prison sentence, while Bich received a three-year suspended sentence for their roles in aiding their father.

In addition, each member of the trio has been ordered to pay a fine of VND100 million ($3,947).

Thanh and his daughters gave loans against collateral to many people at an interest rate of 3% per month between January 2019 and November 2020.

But instead of loan contracts, they coerced them into signing sale contracts at prices significantly lower than the actual value of the collateral.

Tran Uyen Phuong, 43, daughter of beverage tycoon Tran Qui Thanh at the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Court on April 25, 2024. Photo by VnExpress/Thanh Tung

Even when the borrowers paid back the money with interest, Thanh would refuse to give back the assets on various pretexts, including claiming they had forfeited their repurchase rights due to contract breaches.

The trio swindled two property projects and 35 land lots worth a total of VND1.048 trillion ($41.2 million) from four individuals in this manner.

The court identified Thanh as the principal orchestrator of the fraud, with his daughters acting under his guidance.

Mitigating factors considered during sentencing included their previous contributions to the economy and society, and this being their first offense. Thanh’s advanced age was also taken into account as a mitigating factor.

Furthermore, the court nullified the sale contracts that the defendants had forced the borrowers to sign.