Former 'rich' kid gets 10 years in jail for stealing Tiffany jewelry, Hermes wallets from HCMC mall

A HCMC court found Phan Van Chien, 33, guilty of "theft" Thursday.

According to the indictment, he repeatedly committed thefts but received leniency for making an honest confession, returning the stolen items and his family’s contributions to the revolution.

Chien confessed to his crimes in court.

Phan Van Chien at a court in HCMC, April 24, 2025. Photo by VnExpress/Binh Nguyen

He said he was born into a rich family and became used to spending lavishly on luxury goods.

But due to his family’s financial difficulties at the beginning of 2024 he decided to steal luxury items, which he also sold for money.

On Jan. 21, 2024, Chien dressed up and went to the Tiffany & Co. store on Dong Khoi Street in District 1, and asked to see expensive jewelry.

He was invited into the VIP area where staff showed him several jewels.

He pretended to ask for information about the items, waited for the staff to be distracted and slipped three diamond-encrusted bracelets worth VND2.6 billion into his bag.

He then claimed he needed to take a phone call and fled the store.

A few days later Chien returned to the mall, this time going to the Hermes store, where he asked to see expensive wallets and purses.

Luxury goods stolen by Phan Van Chien as seized by the police. Photo by police

He kept asking the staff to bring more items, and, while they were distracted, slipped three wallets costing a total of VND450 million into his bag.

Again he told the staff he needed to answer a phone call and made his way out.

On receiving the report, the District 1 Police reviewed the security footage from the shopping mall, identified Chien as the culprit and arrested him along with the stolen goods.