Court jails Vietnamese tycoon for 21 years for $146m fraud

A former Vietnamese property and aviation tycoon was jailed for 21 years on Monday for fraud and stock market manipulation worth $146 million, state media said.

A Hanoi court said Trinh Van Quyet, who owned the FLC empire of luxury resorts, golf courses and budget carrier Bamboo Airways, was given the heaviest sentence out of 50 accused because he was the leader of the scam.

Van Quyet was “the leader” and benefitted “from the majority of the money in the scam, so he must be given the heaviest sentencing among 50 defendants”, the Hanoi People’s Court said in its verdict quoted by the Tuoi Tre newspaper.

“Through the stock market, the defendants proceeded with fraudulence… leading to mistrust for investors and the stock market, causing anger in society,” it added.

“Therefore relevant punishments are required.”

The trial began July 22 and involved 100 lawyers.

Van Quyet and 49 others — including his two sisters and a number of stock market officials — were charged with fraud, stock market manipulation, abuse of power and publishing incorrect stock market information.

According to the prosecution indictment, Van Quyet set up several stock market brokerages and registered dozens of family members to, ostensibly, trade shares.

But police said while orders to buy shares were placed in hundreds of trading sessions — pushing up the value of the stock — they were cancelled before being matched.