Do Luong police arrest 'loan shark' ringleader charging interest rates up to 150% per month.

Based on information provided by the public, the Do Luong District Police discovered several individuals exploiting people's lack of knowledge and loopholes in the law to lend money at exorbitant interest rates, essentially engaging in "loan sharking." Particularly in Yen Son commune, residents were outraged by the usurious lending activities of a "loan shark boss" over 60 years old. This was Hoang Thi Huong (born in 1958), residing in Hoa Truong hamlet, Yen Son commune, Do Luong district.

This individual exploited the economic difficulties of many people in the area to provide short-term loans.(from 10 to 30 days)with exorbitant interest rates ranging from 25,000 VND per 1 million VND per day to 50,000 VND per 1 million VND per day..When debtors fail to pay interest on time, the perpetrator frequently uses disposable SIM cards to send threatening messages and make abusive phone calls to pressure them. If the debtors are no longer able to pay, the perpetrator often demands that they mortgage or transfer assets to clear the debt.

Police officers from Do Luong district are taking statements from suspect Hoang Thi Huong. Photo: Binh Nguyen

Given the sophisticated and cunning nature of the suspects' activities, the leaders of the Do Luong District Police directed the task forces to quickly launch an investigation to stabilize the situation and help people live and work in peace.

Through professional investigative methods, at 5:30 PM on July 28, 2021, the special task force mobilized 15 officers, divided into three teams, to approach the residence of suspect Hoang Thi Huong; catching her red-handed lending money to many people and collecting interest payments. A search of Huong's house yielded one mobile phone, five notebooks, and other evidence related to illegal lending activities.

At the investigative agency, initially, the suspect Huong was uncooperative, refusing to confess, providing only fragmented information, and denying her criminal acts. However, through professional investigative methods and the documents collected by the Police Investigation Agency, at 11:00 AM on July 29, 2021, Hoang Thi Huong finally confessed and admitted to all her criminal acts in order to receive leniency from the law.

Initially, the Do Luong District Police proved that from the beginning of June 2021 until the time of her arrest, Hoang Thi Huong had lent a total of 2.5 billion VND to 10 individuals with interest rates ranging from 25,000 VND/1 million VND/day to 50,000 VND/1 million VND/day.(corresponding to 912.5% ​​to 1,825% per year))Initial evidence shows that Huong illegally profited more than 250,000,000 VND..

According to investigators from the Do Luong District Police, Huong operated very sophisticatedly. Huong usually conducted lending transactions over the phone; borrowers had to call ahead to schedule an appointment to borrow money and pay interest. She would only meet with borrowers if she felt it was safe. Transactions typically took place between 5 PM and 8 PM daily. When exchanging money, Huong often employed lookouts. All transactions took place inside her house, and Huong always kept the doors locked to avoid detection by authorities.