Over 5,700 people were scammed by Alibaba Real Estate into buying 'phantom' projects.

Ho Chi Minh City police have completed their supplementary investigation report and recommended prosecuting Nguyen Thai Luyen (35 years old) and 22 accomplices for various crimes.Fraudulent appropriation of property;Money laundering.

This move comes after thousands more people came forward to report the crime following an appeal by investigators in mid-October. To date, the case has more than 5,700 victims – 1,600 more than at the start of the investigation.

This investigation report also includes the results of the expert examination, confirming the discovery of 257 pieces of yellow metal with inscriptions.Alibaba Real EstateDuring the search of this company, gold worth nearly 750 million VND was seized.

In total, the Ho Chi Minh City Police have seized 650 plots of land with an area of ​​over 447 hectares, with a total value of over 1,500 billion VND according to the latest appraisal results.

Nguyen Thai Luyen at the time of his arrest by the Ho Chi Minh City Police. Photo:Police provided the information.

Specifically, in Ho Chi Minh City, there are 3 plots of land registered under the names of Alibaba Real Estate and Nguyen Tan Luc (Luyen's younger brother) in Thu Duc City; 234 plots of land in Nhon Trach, Xuan Loc, Long Thanh districts and Bien Hoa City; 369 plots of land in Ba Ria - Vung Tau; and 44 plots of land in Binh Thuan.

During the search, police seized over 9.2 billion VND in cash; 20 bars of yellow metal weighing over 7.3 kg (the results of the examination showed that all the alloys were not gold); 23 cars and motorcycles used by the defendants and suspects; over 1.6 billion VND in rental deposits; and froze over 45 billion VND in 49 personal and company accounts established by Nguyen Thai Luyen and his accomplices...

Investigators determined that Nguyen Thai Luyen, his brother, his wife, and their accomplices established dozens of company entities and created 58 "phantom" projects in Dong Nai, Ba Ria - Vung Tau, and Binh Thuan provinces. This group arbitrarily named the projects, subdivided the land, and then advertised and sold them.

Luyen and his subordinates used a multi-level marketing scheme to raise capital, using land plots in fictitious projects as bait. When selling to victims, Alibaba Real Estate promised to buy back the land at a higher price with a 30% profit after only one year, or immediate profit after purchase with increasing returns over time. In total, 4,100 customers transferred more than 2,500 billion VND to Luyen's group.

Apart from engaging in illegal real estate business activities, Alibaba Company had no other business operations, so the investigating agency determined that "all the defendants' income was illegal."

Police seized evidence during a search of Alibaba's premises. (Photo:)Police provided the information.

Accordingly, Nguyen Thai Luyen and his younger brother Nguyen Thai Linh (31 years old, General Director), Huynh Thi Ngoc Nhu (Deputy General Director in charge of training), Dao Thi Thanh Loi (Deputy General Director in charge of human resources), Nguyen Le Hoang Lan (Deputy General Director in charge of communications), Nguyen Huynh Tu Trinh (legal officer) along with 14 directors and leaders of Alibaba's subsidiaries are recommended for prosecution for the crime.Fraudulent appropriation of property.

In addition to this charge, Luyen's wife and younger brother, Vo Thi Thanh Mai and Nguyen Thai Luc, and accountant Huynh Thi Kim Thang are accused of other offenses.Money laundering.