A top Vietnamese property mogul who was condemned to death in a $27 billion fraud case has filed an appeal, state media said Friday.
Truong My Lan, the chairman of big developer Van Thinh Phat, was convicted last month of defrauding Saigon Commercial Bank (SCB) over a decade.
The 68-year-old was found to have embezzled $12.5 billion, but prosecutors stated the overall damages inflicted by the swindle were now $27 billion, making it one of the largest scams in history, accounting for 6% of Vietnam’s 2023 GDP.
Reports say Lan has filed an appeal against the verdict and sentence and that the court in Ho Chi Minh City had received it.
Lan said in her appeal she took on risks through the bank but did not appropriate the bank’s money.
Following a five-week trial, Lan and 85 others were condemned to various offenses ranging from bribery and abuse of power to appropriation and banking law violations.
Four were sentenced to life in prison, while the others received jail terms ranging from 20 years to three years suspended.
Police have identified approximately 42,000 victims in the scam, which has horrified the Southeast Asian country.
The case was part of a larger national corruption campaign that has targeted countless officials and members of Vietnam’s corporate elite in recent years.
