Fake psychic couple arrested for scamming 200 million VND with rituals to appease spirits.
While counting money after performing a ritual to appease the spirits of the deceased, Ly and her husband, a fake psychic, were caught red-handed by the police during a raid, along with 200 million VND.
On November 3rd, the Investigation Police Department of Phu My town (Ba Ria - Vung Tau province) announced that they have issued a decision to prosecute and an arrest warrant for Nguyen Thi Ly (48 years old, residing in My Xuan ward, Phu My town) and Tran Minh Hung (65 years old, from Ho Chi Minh City) for the crime of "Fraudulent appropriation of property".
According to initial investigations, in April 2023, Nguyen Thi Ly and Tran Minh Hung got married and lived together in My Tan neighborhood, My Xuan ward, Phu My town. From September 2023, although he did not possess psychic abilities, Hung told Ly that he could see spirits, remains, and perform exorcisms.
After that, Ly went to houses near where she lived to take pictures and show them to Hung. From the pictures Ly gave him, Hung "predicted" which houses contained human remains, spirits, or negative energy, and told Ly to contact the homeowners and hire a skilled "spiritual master" to perform an exorcism.
Out of fear and believing Ly's threats, some people asked Ly to help them find a "shaman" to perform rituals that Hung had devised. Before contacting the homeowners, Hung instructed Ly on how to negotiate the offering fee, stipulating that individuals should receive 20 million VND or less, while companies and businesses should receive 30 million to 50 million VND.
On November 1st, Ly went with "Master" Hung and a person hired by Ly to the house of Ms. D.TS (49 years old, residing in Phu My town) to perform an exorcism and expel evil spirits as agreed upon.
Here, "Master" Hung declared that there were two spirits under the floor of Mrs. S.'s bedroom. Afterward, Hung performed rituals of his own choosing to exorcise the spirits.
After the ceremony was over, Mrs. S.'s sister called Ly and Hung over and gave Ly a bundle of money containing 200 million dong.
While Ly was counting the money, the police raided the place, caught him red-handed, and confiscated all the evidence and assets, taking them to the police station for questioning.
During the expanded investigation, the police determined that, in addition to the above incident and using similar methods, Hung and Ly also defrauded two other individuals residing in My Xuan ward, totaling 23 million VND.
The case is still under investigation by the police.
