'Female con artist' hides under the guise of a philanthropist.

"Phyllanthus" turned scammers

Tran Thi Thuy (born in 1980) was born in Cam Xuyen district (Ha Tinh province). She once lived and worked in Ho Chi Minh City with her husband and children. However, around 2023, Thuy returned to Nghe An province and established an office in Hung Trung commune, Hung Nguyen district.

During her work, Thuy created a facade of being a philanthropist, specializing in helping those in need. Thuy also frequently posted pictures of herself participating in charitable activities on social media to build her image.

In January 2024, Tran Thi Thuy visited Nghi Tien commune, Nghi Loc district, to do charity work, donating 5 million VND to the family of Ms. Pham Thi V. (born in 1954). During her visit, Thuy learned that Ms. V. needed to have her land ownership certificate reissued and the land subdivided to her son, so she offered to do it for a fee of 100 million VND. Despite their difficult circumstances, the family borrowed money and gave Thuy 50 million VND.

Not stopping there, Thuy used another tactic: promising to arrange for Mrs. V.'s son to work abroad. Because of her difficult family circumstances, Mrs. V. trusted Thuy's promises and gave her 17 million VND upfront.

After receiving the money from Ms. V, Tran Thi Thuy did not contact any organization, individual, or company authorized to handle labor export procedures, but instead used the money for personal purposes. Thuy also failed to fulfill her commitment regarding the money received for obtaining the land ownership certificate.

After giving money to Thuy on several occasions, Mrs. V's family realized they had been scammed. They repeatedly demanded their money back but were unsuccessful. Therefore, the victims filed a report with the police. Thuy's fraudulent actions and appropriation of money have made Mrs. V's already struggling family even more destitute.

Impersonating lawyers to scam people by promising to "fix" legal cases and facilitate overseas employment.

During the process of establishing her office in Nghe An, Tran Thi Thuy always presented herself as a lawyer, capable of "fixing cases and securing bail" for those who needed it. Many people, trusting her, contacted her for help.

Specifically, in September 2023, after the Nghi Loc District Police (Nghe An province) arrested and prosecuted a gambling case, some relatives of the prosecuted individuals contacted Tran Thi Thuy to ask for help in securing bail or a reduced sentence.

After hearing about the incident, Thuy told the wife of one of the gambling suspects that she could help secure bail and avoid criminal prosecution, as it was merely gambling. Thuy promised to secure bail for the woman's husband for 250 million VND and avoid criminal prosecution for 270 million VND.

Some time later, this woman brought several other people to meet Thuy, including Ms. Nguyen Thi H. During a conversation at a hotel, Thuy said she would help Ms. H.'s husband get released on bail and avoid criminal prosecution, only facing an administrative fine, for a fee of 250 million VND. Thuy stated that 50 million VND of that was the cost of signing a legal service contract with a law firm, but she asked Ms. H. to give the money directly to her.

After Ms. H.'s husband was released on bail pending trial, Thuy led her into another scam. Thuy claimed her company also offered services for sending people abroad for work, and if Ms. H. and her husband wanted her husband to work in the UK, they would need to pay 300 million VND as a fee. Trusting her, Ms. H. transferred money to Thuy several times. Thuy did not fulfill her promises but spent all the money on personal expenses.

Using similar tactics, after promising to secure bail or reduced sentences, Thuy persuaded family members to contribute more money for overseas employment. Some, trusting her, gave Thuy 500 million VND to handle the procedures to go to the US. However, these were just fraudulent schemes by this woman.

The sentence for the super swindler.

Investigators determined that from October 2023 to March 2024, Tran Thi Thuy repeatedly defrauded and misappropriated money from 29 victims residing in Nghe An, Ha Tinh, and Ho Chi Minh City, totaling nearly 6.9 billion VND. The victim who lost the most money was nearly 800 million VND.

Regarding the aforementioned criminal acts, the Nghe An Provincial People's Court recently held a first-instance trial to hear the case against defendant Tran Thi Thuy for the crime of fraud and appropriation of property. Before the witness stand, the defendant admitted to the criminal acts as charged in the indictment. Thuy admitted that she is not a lawyer but, wanting money for personal expenses, devised schemes to defraud the victims. The defendant stated that she is currently unable to repay the victims and offered her apologies, while also requesting the court to consider mitigating circumstances.

Attending the trial, the victims demanded that the defendant return their money. They stated that they were deceived into giving up large sums of money because they trusted the defendant. Many of the victims had been defrauded by Thuy twice, ranging from attempts to influence court cases and secure bail to scams promising overseas employment.

Attending the trial as victims, some admitted that due to their own lack of understanding, they had fallen into Thuy's trap and become her prey. They said this was a costly lesson they had to pay for their ignorance.

Through the trial, the panel of judges also reminded people to be vigilant against the诱惑 (enticements) of unscrupulous individuals so as not to fall into scams and suffer financial losses.

Regarding the defendant's criminal conduct, the panel of judges determined that this was a violation of the law and dangerous to society, therefore, Tran Thi Thuy was sentenced to 20 years in prison for the crime of fraud and appropriation of property. In terms of civil matters, the court ordered the defendant to return the money to the victims.