Son embezzles billions, old father is 'surrounded' in court

((Baonghean.vn) - In court, Cuong's father was surrounded by his son's victims. Cuong was in prison, so they needed someone to reclaim the money Cuong had embezzled. In response to the accusations, he was... silent.

Mr. Nguyen Van Quang and his wife seemed to be “weak” in front of nearly 10 victims - victims of the “Abuse of trust to appropriate property” case in which his son was the perpetrator. The couple sat silently, only standing up to answer when the judge asked. The couple did not dare to look up because of the indignation of those who lost money because they trusted their son.

Nguyen Van Cuong at the trial. Photo by Nhu Binh.

Nguyen Van Cuong (born in 1983) - his son, former Head of Transaction Office of a famous bank branch, was the pride of his family. But then, when he heard his son confess that he had borrowed money from many people to pay off his gambling debts and was now unable to pay, his heart felt like someone was crushing it. In a panic, he had to close his eyes and agree to let his son escape abroad. His whole family pooled 17,000 USD to "run" for his son to go to Germany, but before reaching the airport, Nguyen Van Cuong was arrested by the police.

Over 30 years old, Cuong is the Head of a bank branch in Dien Chau district. With a salary of a head of department plus other bonuses, Cuong's income is the dream of many people. However, Cuong has a bad habit of gambling on football. Therefore, his salary of nearly 20 million/month cannot "afford" this gambling hobby.

At first, Cuong bet small for fun, but gradually he bet big. The more he bet, the more he lost, and the more frustrated he became, so he poured money into trying to recoup his losses. To get money, Cuong borrowed from his own customers using the trick of "reversing contracts". As a credit manager, handsome, elegant, and persuasive, Cuong easily won the trust of wealthy customers.

At first, winning bets or taking money from later borrowers to pay off earlier borrowers, the customers trusted Cuong more and more, lending money to him, some gave Cuong 800 million, others gave at least 200 million. In just a short time, Cuong had borrowed from 9 customers an amount of more than 4 billion VND. By the end of August 2016, Cuong had lost bets continuously, lost the ability to pay his debts, and quit his job, then the victims were shocked when they gave him a large amount of money.

At the trial, Cuong did not deny his guilt. He admitted to all the crimes that the provincial People's Procuracy accused him of. Cuong's victims only wanted him to return the money he had embezzled and did not want to make a fuss. However, with Cuong's current family situation, compensation of up to 4 billion VND was unavoidable.

Mr. Nguyen Van Quang (marked with X) surrounded by creditors. Photo by Nhu Binh.

Listening to Mr. Quang explain his situation, the retired couple did not have enough income to pay off the debt for their son at once. Moreover, he did not dare to confirm the repayment period, the victims began to lose their composure, they thought that his family was deliberately avoiding paying the debt because his family's assets were not small. Some people even spoke harshly, saying that he was reluctant to save his son because he was too stingy with money, leaving him to suffer in prison. The gray-haired man could only bow his head and accept the consequences or respond weakly.

If Mr. Quang had been wise enough, when he knew his son was falling into illegal ways, he would have pulled him out, not helped him escape but encouraged him to bravely face his mistakes, used the money to “run” for a visa to help him pay off part of his debt, maybe he wouldn’t have fallen into this sad situation today. But he is a father, what father can bear to see his son fall into prison, what father can see his son make a mistake without feeling pain, see his son begging for help without helping?

Nguyen Van Cuong was sentenced to 9 years in prison by the People's Court of Nghe An province and ordered to compensate the victims for all the money he had embezzled. The trial ended, Mr. Quang and his wife left the court but were quickly surrounded by the victims.

The gray-haired father seemed to be lost in the midst of the insults from his son’s victims. His son said he would persuade his parents to sell the ancestral land to compensate the victims. At this age, can’t they even keep the land where they worship their ancestors?

Nhu Binh