Authorities dismantled a large-scale illegal lottery ring worth trillions of dong.
A gambling ring operating under the guise of a successful business and operating in many fields, including charity work, with a scale of trillions of VND, led by "Tuan Cho Goc," has been dismantled by the Thai Binh Provincial Police; dozens of other individuals have been arrested.
According to investigation documents, on March 24, the Criminal Investigation Agency of Thai Binh Provincial Police issued a decision to initiate criminal proceedings and indict 39 defendants in a gambling ring. This is a large-scale case involving activities in Thai Binh, Hai Duong provinces and Hanoi, with some suspects operating under the guise of successful businessmen.
Initial investigation documents show that in 2024 alone, the amount of money transacted in this gambling ring was approximately over 2,500 billion VND. The ringleader is Bui Quoc Tuan (commonly known as "Tuan Cho Goc", born in 1970, residing at Lot A16, Thanh Cong residential area, Group 4, Quang Trung Ward, Thai Binh City, Thai Binh Province).
"Tuan Cho Goc" led and operated the network under the guise of a successful businessman, engaging in numerous activities, including charitable work.
Accordingly, Tuan directly established a network of close associates at many levels (in Thai Binh province alone, there were 3 major networks), with those at lower levels only knowing their immediate superiors. Only those who provided crucial assistance and were close acquaintances knew of Tuan's role in the network.
During their operations, the perpetrators thoroughly utilized electronic telecommunication devices to commit crimes; conducting transactions and communicating with each other through social media platforms such as Zalo, Telegram, and SMS messages; establishing private groups, retracting messages, disbanding private groups, and automatically erasing traces within the same day...
Regarding methods of payment for gambling, the individuals involved mainly used bank transfers through multiple accounts; they frequently changed account numbers and may also transfer money directly in cash.
Furthermore, "Tuan Cho Goc" did not use bank transaction accounts (which were accounts with auspicious numbers like 666666, 888888 that had already been opened at the bank) to commit crimes, but only used accounts of subordinates, virtual accounts, and junk accounts... that Tuan had collectively registered to conduct transactions and settle winnings and losses.
During the urgent search of the suspects' residences, investigators seized a large amount of cash; and froze and confiscated numerous assets and real estate properties with a total value exceeding 700 billion VND (including money, gold, silver, precious stones, cars, and real estate in Hanoi, Thai Binh, and other related provinces and cities).
According to Colonel Pham Manh Hung, Deputy Director and Head of the Criminal Investigation Agency of Thai Binh Provincial Police, and Head of the special task force, this is only the initial result. The case involves many more individuals in various provinces and cities. Currently, the investigating agency is urgently and actively working to expand the case, strictly and thoroughly prosecute all involved individuals, and seize all assets obtained through criminal activity. At the same time, they will clarify any signs of other crimes, if any, in accordance with the law.
