80 engineers build online gambling software worth tens of thousands of billions

On the afternoon of November 16, the People's Court of Phu Tho province continued the first-instance trial of 92 defendants in the transnational trillion-dollar gambling ring case by clarifying how the card games were set up.

The case file determined that in 2014, Phan Sao Nam (35 years old, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Director of VTC Online Media Joint Stock Company - VTC Online) met Hoang Thanh Trung (36 years old, former Director of the Software Center - VTC Technology and Digital Content Company - VTC Intecom) and was boasted by Trung that he owned software and a team of good technicians who could develop and operate an online gambling software system in the form of card games.

Trung proposed to find a legal entity for himself to build and develop online gambling software. In response, Nam contacted Do Bich Thuy (owner of Nam Viet Real Estate and Housing Development Company Limited) and opened a representative office in Hanoi, giving Trung full authority to manage it.

Knowing that the High-Tech Security Development Investment Company Limited (CNC) is a front company of C50 (Department of High-Tech Crime Prevention and Control, General Department of Police), Nam invited Nguyen Van Duong (CNC Chairman) to cooperate in releasing online gambling software and was accepted.

In early April 2015, Duong directed his subordinate Luu Thi Hong (CNC General Director) to sign a contract with Nam to provide software services and technology solutions, and commercially exploit a card game under the name RikVip.

After signing the contract with CNC company, Nam directed Phan Anh Tuan (VTC Online Deputy Director of Technology) to buy equipment and sign a contract to rent a server location in Cau Giay district. Tuan and the technical staff of VTC Online company then set up a system of 262 computers for the RikVip card game to operate.

In mid-April 2015, Hoang Thanh Trung completed the software and started organizing online gambling.

On the afternoon of November 16, the group of defendants Kim Thanh Thuy and Pham Trong Tai (former technical staff of Nam Viet company) stated that they were hired by CNC to build the Rikvip card game and complete the gambling software.

Tai said he was a national excellent student and had many certificates of merit. Tai received the source code from Hoang Thanh Trung and then modified the interface. Tai also helped other defendants operate the game. In response to the judge's question "who wrote the Rikvip game software", Tai said that Rikvip is essentially a source code set.

Meanwhile, according to the indictment, when Trung was assigned by Do Bich Thuy to be in charge of the Company's Office in Hanoi, he directly recruited and accepted 36 employees from VTC Intercom to work at the branch. After that, Trung gradually recruited up to over 80 people to participate in game operations.

Trung directed Tai to register the domain name "Rikvip.vn" at GMO Runsystem Company on April 18, 2015 to test its operation. After the game was running stably, on June 25, 2015, Tai submitted a request to return the domain name and Nguyen Van Duong directed Luu Thi Hong to register the domain name Rikvip.vn from June 30, 2015.

Trung also directed Kim Thanh Thuy (33 years old, Head of Core Department), Pham Trong Tai, Nguyen Viet Cuong and other employees recruited by Trung to build, supplement and develop the Rikvip card game portal software. The software operates on the web platform and mobile devices (phones, tablets) and gradually pushes it to the server system of VTC Online Company to organize online gambling.

A total of 54 card games have been built with card playing forms such as: Sicbo, three cards, ta la, xi to, bai cao, lieng, xoc xoc, chan, tien len mien nam, mau binh, poker, sam loc, tien len mien bac, bau cua, so do, sicbo, thunder, Rik kingdom, roulette, aquarium, dancing girls... Players use virtual money (called Rik).

Lend the company because of trust in Phan Sao Nam's success

Also according to the case file, after lending legal status, on April 12, 2015, defendant Do Bich Thuy (Chairman of the Board of Directors and Director of Nam Viet Housing and Land Development Company Limited) signed a contract with Nam on "developing and exploiting software business" service called "Win2All", commercially exploited under the name Rikvip. Including the content: "...

Party B (Nam Viet Company) is a partner of Party A (VTC Online Company) in producing, developing and operating online services on the Internet and telecommunications networks... VTC Online Company is responsible for publishing, trading and commercially exploiting these services.

Regarding the above contract, on the afternoon of November 16, with a choked voice, Ms. Thuy stated that she heard Nam say that he needed a company with a long-standing legal entity to sign a contract to write software for VTC Online, and she agreed. Trusting Nam, she did not review the contract and only saw that Nam said this was a technology development contract.

Defendant Thuy said that Nam's mother is the defendant's mother's younger sister. Nam Viet Real Estate Company was founded by her. The business registration documents show that there are two shareholders, but in reality there is only one.

Ms. Thuy said she had absolute trust in Nam because the two sisters had been together since childhood. "Nam's success made the defendant trust him absolutely, so he deprived himself of the right to ask and know. Today, having to stand before the trial, the defendant realized that his lack of knowledge was a mistake that led to his violations, but he was never really angry with Nam," Ms. Thuy said. Behind him, Nam looked down, his face sad.

"Since working with the investigation agency, the defendant knows in his conscience that it was an unacceptable mistake. Up to now, the defendant realizes that it was an act of assistance, there was no coercion from Nam. The defendant also does not understand anything about the Rikvip card game," Thuy choked.

Ms. Thuy said that Nam Viet Company is still operating. She voluntarily paid 50 billion VND for illegal profits. In this case, she was prosecuted for the crime ofGambling organizationas an accomplice.

Phan Sao Nam inflated contract value

This afternoon, defendant Huynh Trong Van (director of ODS company - online data business) stated that the company signed a contract to rent servers and transmission lines with Nam Viet Company and VTC Online.

Van khai knew Phan Sao Nam for a long time, through game seminars. In 2015, Nam asked Van to rent a server system. ODS rented 85 servers to Nam Viet, 8 to VTC Online. However, the contract inflated the numbers to 235 and 32 servers, respectively. The contract value was inflated 10 times.

The defendant stated that he was not allowed to deduct any percentage for individuals, but all the inflated money was transferred back to the companies.

According to the accusation, Van's company benefited 7.8 billion VND. However, Van stated that during the investigation, he repeatedly asked the investigation agency and the People's Procuracy to review the contract value because the money spent on maintaining the server system was nearly 7.8 billion. Therefore, the actual profit was only 116 million VND and had been paid to the Department of Enforcement. "I request the panel of judges to reconsider the benefit amount," Van said.

Called up for confrontation. Nam confirmed the information Van had just stated, but said he couldn't remember many details.

The trial continues today.