Nghe An: Land brokers create fraudulent documents to sell properties worth over 17 billion VND.
Taking advantage of the fact that the victims were elderly and infirm, lacking knowledge of land procedures, Mai Van Minh used fraudulent methods to create "fictitious" documents and deceive people into buying three plots of land worth over 17 billion VND.
On May 8th, the People's Court of Nghe An province opened the first-instance trial of defendant Mai Van Minh (born in 1995), residing in Nghi Phong commune, Nghi Loc district (now Vinh City), on the charge of fraud and appropriation of property.
According to the indictment, due to business losses, Mai Van Minh borrowed money from many people, leading to debt.
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From August 2023, while working as a real estate broker, Minh became acquainted with many people who wanted to handle land-related procedures. Taking advantage of the victims being elderly, frail, and lacking knowledge of land procedures, and exploiting their trust, Minh conceived the idea of appropriating their property.
Minh used blank A4 papers, tricking the victims into signing at the bottom of the page, signing and fingerprinting on the third page of the Land Use Rights Transfer Contract, while falsely claiming these were procedures for subdividing land, donating land for inter-village roads, and transferring land use rights to the victims.
Because they trusted Minh as a knowledgeable real estate broker and believed he was handling the land-related procedures according to their wishes, the victims agreed to sign the documents Minh gave them without reading or checking the contents.
After the victims signed the documents without authorization, Minh took the files to a notary office to complete the procedures. Then, Mai Van Minh brought the files to the One-Stop Service Department of the Nghi Loc District People's Committee to submit and complete the procedures for transferring land use rights from the victims to his name. Afterward, Minh sold those plots of land to others to pay off debts and for personal expenses.
The investigating agency determined that from August 2023 to January 2024, using the aforementioned fraudulent methods, Minh transferred ownership of three plots of land belonging to three victims in Nghi Phong commune, with a total value of over 17.7 billion VND.
This includes a plot of land measuring 1,062 square meters.2valued at over 4.1 billion VND; the plot of land has an area of 1,849 square meters.2valued at over 10 billion VND; and a plot of land measuring 630m².2worth over 3.2 billion VND.
At the trial, the defendant admitted to the crime and expressed remorse. The defendant apologized to the victims and those involved.
After a comprehensive review of the case, the panel of judges sentenced the defendant Mai Văn Minh to 17 years in prison for the crime of fraud and appropriation of property.
