Court rules businessman, supermodel ex-couple must split $12M fortune

Supermodel Ngoc Thuy arrives in court on Sep. 18, 2023. Photo by Thien An

Giving its final verdict of the case on Wednesday, the HCMC People’s Court read a judgement that the disputed properties - including several Vietnam-based houses, automobiles, stocks, and cash - were generated during An and Thuy’s marriage, and thus, should be considered "joint assets."

It added that as a Vietnamese nationality holder, Thuy "contributed a major role" in purchasing and managing the properties.

At the same time, it denied An’s claim that the money Thuy used to buy the assets was money he "transferred to her" and "made before marriage," citing lack of proof.

Consequently, it approved Thuy’s request for half of the assets.

It also ordered Thuy to pay An VND8.7 billion from the rents she had got on nine apartments in HCMC’s District 1, which are among the disputed assets.

An, 61, married Thuy, 43, a model and actress, in 2006 after knowing her for just a week. They divorced in 2008.

He sued her in 2010 claiming she had not returned assets he had bought with "money he had earned before the marriage."

As a foreigner, he had to register properties in Thuy’s name during their marriage, as required by Vietnamese law, he pointed out.

The court held its first trial on Aug. 18 this year, 13 years after An filed the suit, since it had to "obtain documents related to the properties in dispute."