Expats in US, Australia scammed out of $39,000 by fake Vietnamese bank staff

By Hoai Thanh, Truong Ha July 1, 2025 | 04:55 pm PT

Tran Phuoc Vinh (L) and Truong Van Tho at a police station in Vietnam. Photo by VnExpress/Hoai Thanh

Two men in Vietnam have been arrested for scamming nearly US$39,000 from Vietnamese expats in the U.S. and Australia by posing as bank employees offering fake loans online.

Tran Phuoc Vinh, 25. and Truong Van Tho, 24, both from Hue, were detained by Lam Dong police on July 1 for fraud.

Police said Vinh had previously served time for online fraud. After his release earlier this year, he moved to Lam Dong and teamed up with Tho to carry out the scam.

Since May, the pair allegedly created multiple Facebook accounts pretending to be bank staff and posted advertisements offering easy loans. Their targets were Vietnamese people living abroad who needed quick cash.

They forged documents and told victims to pay insurance and tax fees into intermediary bank accounts to secure the loans. After receiving the money, they cut off all contact.

Investigators said dozens of victims were defrauded, with total losses nearing VND1 billion ($39,000).