Portrait of the "boss" of counterfeiting seals and documents in Nghe An

Nghe An police dismantled a large-scale fake diploma and seal making ring

(Baonghean.vn) - Nearly 300 fake seals of state agencies, organizations, and businesses, hundreds of diplomas, transcripts, and academic results from universities, colleges, and high schools in many provinces and cities across the country have just been discovered and seized by the Investigation Security Agency (Nghe An Police).

Open a "factory" in the house

When mentioning Nguyen Thi Huong (born in 1954, residing in Tan Hoa block, Ha Huy Tap ward, Vinh city), investigators of the Security Investigation Department (PA92, Nghe An Provincial Police) are not unfamiliar. This woman is "familiar" with the police agency as she has been arrested 3 times and sentenced to prison 2 times for the crime of "Forgery of seals and documents of agencies and organizations".

Nguyen Thi Huong with evidence at the Investigation Security Agency of Nghe An Province Police. Photo: PX15

Nguyen Thi Huong used to join the army, serving in the Quang Tri battlefield. After being discharged with the 4/4 disabled veteran status, Huong returned to work in the seafood processing industry. Although her family life was not difficult, with her "money-hungry" nature, Huong began to participate in the production of fake diplomas and certificates.

In 2005, realizing the increasing demand for diplomas and certificates, Huong began to think of ways to sell them to those in need. Huong bought printers, photocopiers, computers, and then set up a “workshop” to produce fake diplomas and certificates right in her house. However, Huong’s actions could not fool the police and she was arrested and prosecuted for “Forgery of seals and documents of agencies and organizations”. In 2006, the People’s Court of Nghe An province brought the case to trial and sentenced Nguyen Thi Huong to 15 months of suspended imprisonment.

It was thought that after being sentenced to prison, Huong would “reform”, but once again, she returned to her old “profession”. Huong connected with Hoang Dinh Dong (born in 1973, residing in Nghi Hoa ward, Cua Lo town) to find people who needed to make fake diplomas and certificates. After Dong reported back, there was a person who wanted to study abroad in Korea and needed a university degree to complete the application and hired Huong to help.

Upon receiving the order, Huong directly assigned her son, Tran Dang Khuong (born in 1983), to forge all the documents ordered by the customer. It is known that in 2012, Khuong graduated from the Academy of Posts and Telecommunications, then worked at Nghe An Pedagogical College. Some time later, Khuong quit his job to "support" his mother in forging documents and seals of agencies and organizations.

Nguyen Thi Huong and her son Tran Dang Khuong (red shirt) were arrested in April 2016. Photo: Archive

Khuong himself is very proficient in IT, so he went online, searched for diplomas and certificates from universities and colleges, then used a computer to edit and fill in the customers' information. To legalize the diploma, Khuong forged the seals of universities and colleges and stamped them on the fake diplomas and certificates that were given to customers.

Huong's fake seal and document ring existed for a while before being discovered by the Nghe An Provincial Police Department of Investigation Security. On April 13, 2016, the Investigation Security Department caught Hoang Dinh Dong red-handed while he was handing over fake diplomas to some students who wanted to apply to study abroad in Korea. Based on Dong's testimony, at around 8:30 p.m. on April 14, 2016, the Investigation Security Department ambushed and caught Nguyen Thi Huong red-handed while she was trading some fake documents for customers such as high school diplomas, diplomas from some colleges and universities.

During a search of Nguyen Thi Huong's residence, the Investigation Security Department seized 3 printers, 1 laptop, many fake diplomas and fake seals, such as the seals of Nghi Loc 4 High School (Nghi Loc District), Hung Loc Commune People's Committee (Vinh City), Nghe An Department of Education and Training. There were even fake seals of an army regiment, certified copies, signatures of leaders, various types of blanks and hundreds of other documents related to the forgery of documents and seals of agencies and organizations. For her actions, Nguyen Thi Huong was later sentenced by the Provincial People's Court to 24 months in prison, suspended for 48 months.

"Addicted" to counterfeiting seals and documents

Although she was serving her sentence, Nguyen Thi Huong refused to give up forging documents. This time, Huong did not open a workshop in her own house but borrowed a room at her daughter's house in Nghi Thai commune (Nghi Loc) to avoid detection by the police. This house was not regularly occupied, so Huong freely purchased machinery and equipment and, together with her son, produced fake diplomas and certificates.

Many fake seals of state agencies and organizations, including those of police units, were forged by Huong and her son. Photo: PX15

In early 2018, through professional work, the Investigation Security Agency of Nghe An Province Police discovered a ring specializing in forging documents and certificates to supply to the market for those who need to order in large quantities, many types and sophisticated methods. And what the police agency did not expect was that the ringleader of this ring was Nguyen Thi Huong. The police agency discovered that Huong often visited her daughter's house in Nghi Thai commune, so they secretly followed her.

After collecting enough evidence, on April 27, at Kim Dong Street, Hung Binh Ward, Vinh City, the Investigation Security Agency caught Nguyen Thi Huong red-handed while handing over her diploma and related fake documents to Nguyen Duc Tuan (born in 1946, residing in Hung Binh Ward, Vinh City). Searching the trunk of Huong's motorbike, the police agency also seized 4 diplomas and certificates from universities and colleges in the area.

Conducting an urgent search of Nguyen Thi Huong's residence and workplace, the authorities seized many machines, equipment, fake diplomas and papers from many agencies and organizations. In particular, the police also discovered 283 fake seals of hundreds of universities and colleges across the country, fake seals of the Nghe An Police Investigation Security Agency, the Provincial People's Court, the Investigation Police Agency, Vinh City Police, Nghi Loc District Police and other departments, branches and sectors.

When Huong was arrested for forging seals and documents in her own home, her daughter was surprised. As for Huong's husband, after learning that his wife had been arrested and convicted twice, he tried his best to stop her, but she still did not give up. According to investigators, the main reason is that forging documents brings in high income for the subject. For each certificate, Huong sells for 300,000 VND, college degrees for 600,000 VND, and university degrees for 800,000 VND. If customers have a need, Huong and her daughter can make dozens of fake certificates and diplomas within a day.

Fake diplomas forged by Nguyen Thi Huong and her daughter. Photo: PX15

According to an investigator, the diplomas and certificates made by Huong and her mother are very sophisticated, look exactly like the real thing, so it is very difficult to detect that they are fake with the naked eye. Huong produces two types of seals, one printed and one embossed, used directly on documents. Most of the people who buy Huong's fake diplomas and certificates are preparing to study abroad, work abroad, apply for jobs... so they want to legalize their documents.

After hearing that his mother had been arrested, Khuong took a bus to Hanoi. However, knowing that he could not escape, on May 4, Khuong returned to his hometown and turned himself in to the Investigation Security Agency. On May 5, the Investigation Security Agency of Nghe An Province issued a decision to prosecute the case, prosecute the accused and temporarily detain Nguyen Thi Huong for 3 months to investigate the crime of "Forgery of seals and documents of agencies and organizations". His son, Tran Dang Khuong, was also prosecuted for the same act but was released on bail and prohibited from leaving his place of residence.