Nghe An: Suspect prosecuted for impersonating a 'free medical check-up' service to fraudulently sell dietary supplements.
Nghe An police have just initiated legal proceedings and temporarily detained Phung Thi Thu Hien (born in 1988) for exploiting the guise of "free health check-ups and consultations" to sell overpriced dietary supplements to thousands of people in mountainous areas.
On October 16th, the Economic, Corruption, Smuggling, and Environmental Crime Investigation Department (Economic Police) of Nghe An Provincial Police announced that they had served the decision to initiate criminal proceedings, indict the suspect, and temporarily detain Phung Thi Thu Hien (born in 1988), residing in Thanh Liet ward, Hanoi city, for the crime of...Deceiving customers.
Previously, through intelligence gathering, the Economic Police Department discovered a group of people wearing white lab coats exhibiting suspicious behavior related to exploiting the guise of "free health check-ups and consultations" to sell overpriced dietary supplements to poor people in mountainous areas of Nghe An province.
Investigations revealed that Phung Thi Thu Hien was the ringleader. From January 2025, Hien conceived the idea of organizing free health check-ups and consultations in mountainous communes in Nghe An province to sell health supplements for profit. To legitimize the activity, Hien drafted a "Plan for organizing free health consultations and surveys, coordinating community health care, and preventing non-communicable diseases," which included free check-ups and consultations, product introductions, etc., and requested the People's Committees of the communes to approve the plan. From there, Hien and her accomplices impersonated medical teams from the central and provincial governments, going to communes and villages to conduct check-ups, consultations, and sell products illegally.
To create a perfect cover for her activities, Hien bought electronic scales, projectors, folding beds, rented portable ultrasound machines, and hired a group of people without medical or pharmaceutical licenses who impersonated doctors and technicians. At these events, they presented information about bone and joint diseases, liver diseases, thyroid diseases, etc., using projectors, then proceeded to measure height and weight, perform ultrasounds, create examination forms, and "diagnose" a large number of people as "sick." To further gain people's trust, the group wore white lab coats during the examinations.
Next, Hien and her accomplices introduced "specialized medicine" (which was actually just a dietary supplement) with false advertising, exaggerating its effects as if it could cure bone and joint diseases, fatty liver disease, thyroid tumors, etc. To entice people to buy the product, the group launched a "50% discount promotion," but in reality, the 50% discount was still many times higher than the import price.
When faced with public criticism, Phung Thi Thu Hien quickly ceased operations and instructed her accomplices to leave the area. However, on their way back from the former Ky Son district, Hien and her accomplices were summoned to the headquarters for questioning by a task force from the Economic Police Department of Nghe An Provincial Police.
During the investigation, the Police Investigation Agency seized more than 1,500 boxes of dietary supplements that Hien had been selling to people. Notably, the Police Investigation Agency clarified that nearly 1,000 victims in many mountainous areas of Nghe An province were deceived by Hien and her group of accomplices.
Currently, the Economic Police Department is continuing its expanded investigation and prosecuting those involved for fraudulent appropriation of property in accordance with the law. At the same time,Anyone who is a victim of the group led by Phung Thi Thu Hien is requested to contact Lieutenant Colonel Tran Thanh Tuan (investigator of the Economic Police Department; Phone number: 0915.562.288) to cooperate in providing information to assist in the investigation and clarification of the case.
The police recommend that when detecting similar suspicious signs, people should promptly notify the local authorities or the nearest police station for guidance, handling, and timely prevention of fraudulent activities, thus protecting the legitimate rights of the people.