Beware of scams that exploit spirituality to steal money.
Recently, taking advantage of spiritual services, religious beliefs, and the lack of understanding among some people, many individuals have used various methods and tricks to defraud and misappropriate assets on a large scale.
Identifying new scam tactics
Recently (May 30, 2024), the Nghi Loc District Police, in coordination with relevant units, successfully cracked a case involving the fraudulent sale of antique statues of Saint Joseph, Our Lady of the Rosary, Our Lady of Grace, etc., to people, religious leaders, and officials at churches and parishes in many provinces and cities nationwide, appropriating billions of VND.
This is a new and very sophisticated scam, exploiting the religious beliefs of victims to commit crimes, affecting public security and order, and causing public outrage. The arrested suspect is Vo Van Kien, residing in Trang Bang town, Tay Ninh province; seized evidence includes 9 bronze statues, 3 mobile phones, and other related items.
Previously, the Nghi Loc District Police received a report from a woman residing in Nghi Loc District stating that in mid-April 2024, two strangers approached her and introduced themselves as having unearthed statues of Saint Joseph, Our Lady of the Rosary, and Our Lady of Grace, and offered to sell them to her for 177 million VND.
During the verification process, the investigation team identified the two individuals who fraudulently sold the ancient statues as: Vo Van Kien, residing in Gia Loc ward, Trang Bang town, and Nguyen Chi Tam, residing in Suoi Da commune, Duong Minh Chau district, Tay Ninh province.
The special investigation team dispatched task forces to Tay Ninh province to verify the information. However, the arrest proved very difficult because the suspects moved around and hid in Cambodia, frequently changing their phone numbers and methods of contacting their families. Determined to combat crime, on May 30, 2024, in Trang Bang town, Tay Ninh province, authorities successfully apprehended Vo Van Kien for the crime of fraud and misappropriation of property.
At the police station, Kien confessed that from the beginning of 2024 until now, he and Nguyen Chi Tam had conspired to buy bronze statues for 1 to 1.5 million VND each, then added the letters and numbers "24-12-1728" and "GOLD 14K" to make the statues appear to be "antiques" made of gold and silver with high value. Afterward, they would approach parishes and churches to fraudulently resell them for 15 to 20 million VND per statue.
Using the aforementioned fraudulent methods and tactics, the perpetrators traveled to many provinces and cities such as Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Ha Tinh, Hue, Da Nang, Ho Chi Minh City, etc., targeting Catholic parishes, congregations, and religious centers to swindle and embezzle approximately 2 billion VND from numerous victims.
This includes a fraud case involving the misappropriation of 177 million VND from residents in Nghi Loc district in mid-April 2024. Currently, the Nghi Loc District Police are continuing to investigate and expand the case.
Notably, some unscrupulous individuals are exploiting websites and social media accounts to extensively advertise "spiritual services," thereby defrauding people of money through the exchange and sale of amulets and spiritual items with superstitious connotations.
For example, on May 19, 2024, the Thai Hoa Town Police successfully cracked a case, dismantling a group specializing in defrauding people by selling various types of "charms and amulets" on social media at exorbitant prices.
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Over a period of six years, the suspects sold "charms" to thousands of people nationwide, earning a total profit of over 86 billion VND. The four arrested individuals are: Nguyen Van Kien (born 1987), Le Thi Lan (born 1985) - Kien's wife, both residing in Nghia My commune, Thai Hoa town; Vy Thi Huong (born 1963) - Kien's mother-in-law, residing in Chau Hong commune, Quy Hop district; and Le Dinh Quy (born 1991), residing in Le Loi ward, Vinh city.
The seized items included one laptop, ten mobile phones, amulets, tools for making amulets, and notebooks written in ethnic languages...
During questioning at the investigative agency, the suspects confessed to using multiple phone numbers and registering on various social media platforms (Telegram, Facebook, Zalo) to advertise and sell various types of "charms," such as "charms to keep a lover," "charms to keep a wife or husband," "charms of hatred," "charms of obedience," "charms for business success," etc., at prices ranging from 9.9 to 10.9 million VND per "charm." After making contact, the suspects would create the "charms" using mugwort, ginger, salt, herbs, etc., and send them to the victims.
Initially, authorities determined that from 2018 to the present, the suspects had sold "charms and amulets" to thousands of people nationwide, earning a total profit of over 86 billion VND. The investigation is currently ongoing and being expanded.
Similar incidents have occurred quite frequently recently, showing that scammers often exploit the faith or superstition of their victims to carry out their fraudulent activities.
A typical example is Tran Thi Soa (born in 1985), from Tien Thanh commune, Yen Thanh district. Due to her close relationship with Ms. TTQ, residing in Thai Hoa town, and because Ms. Q. strongly believed in spiritual matters and often asked Soa to tell fortunes and perform rituals, in May 2023, after suffering losses in stock market investments, Soa conceived the idea of exploiting Ms. Q. to defraud and misappropriate her assets.
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From May 14-16, 2023, using the pretext that Ms. Q. and her son had suffered misfortune and "had to pay money for a ritual to appease the spirits, sever negative energy, and replace negative energy," Tran Thi Soa defrauded Ms. Q. three times, appropriating a total of 1.63 billion VND.
Soa invested all the money she defrauded from the victims in the stock market, subsequently losing it all. On October 30, 2023, the Criminal Police Department (Nghe An Provincial Police) arrested Tran Thi Soa for fraud and misappropriation of property.
Combine strict enforcement with public awareness campaigns to improve vigilance.
Clause 5, Article 5 of the Law on Beliefs and Religions of 2016 stipulates that: The act of exploiting religious activities for personal gain is strictly prohibited.
Accordingly, any form of fraud involving the exploitation of spirituality and religious beliefs will be severely punished according to the law.
According to Dr. Trong Hai, Director of Trong Hai & Associates Law Firm: Depending on the severity of the violation, acts of exploiting spirituality, religion, and beliefs to defraud and misappropriate property will be subject to administrative penalties or criminal prosecution.
Specifically, regarding administrative handling:Clause 2, Article 15 of Decree 158/2013/ND-CP stipulates: "A fine of VND 3,000,000 to VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed."riceRegarding any of the following acts: Exploiting shamanic practices, fortune telling, spirit summoning, drawing lots, casting spells, spreading prophecies, and other similar forms for personal gain.”
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Regarding criminal prosecutionExploiting spirituality, religion, or beliefs to gain profit or seize the property of others worth 2 million VND or more, or less than 2 million VND but falling under special circumstances, may result in criminal prosecution for the crime of fraud and appropriation of property as stipulated in Article 174 of the Penal Code. The minimum penalty is non-custodial rehabilitation for up to 3 years or imprisonment from 6 months to 3 years; the maximum penalty is up to 20 years or life imprisonment.
In addition, offenders may also be subject to one of the following supplementary penalties: a fine of up to 100 million VND, prohibition from holding office, prohibition from practicing a certain profession or doing a certain job, or confiscation of assets.
Furthermore, acts of spiritual fraud can also be prosecuted under the crime of practicing superstition and sorcery as stipulated in Article 320 of the 2015 Penal Code.
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In light of the increasing number of cases exploiting spirituality and religious beliefs to commit fraud and seize property, in addition to strictly handling violations, in recent times, the authorities have also actively coordinated with Party committees and governments at all levels to promote propaganda and raise awareness among all segments of the population.
In April 2024, the Ministry of Public Security's online portal warned citizens to be vigilant against scams using spiritual methods via social media. According to the Ministry of Public Security, recently, criminals have been using high technology to commit fraud.Property theft tends to be complex, unpredictable, and have serious consequences. This includes scams and property thefts disguised as "spiritual services."(Fortune telling, horoscope reading, warding off bad luck, praying for wealth and fortune, advising on buying "amulets" for wealth and fortune...).
The police advise people to be extremely vigilant and cautious when using social media, wary of schemes that exploit spirituality, national culture, and identity for personal gain.
To enhance the effectiveness of preventing and combating this type of crime, relevant authorities need to continue guiding people's religious and spiritual activities in accordance with the nation's traditions and in compliance with the law.
From the perspective of the public, when detecting cases with signs of fraud, it is necessary to promptly report them to the authorities so that appropriate measures can be taken, avoiding serious consequences.