On 22/3, Hanoi City Police announced that this incident is a form of "online kidnapping," a tactic that is not new but continues to ensnare many students.

The gold the female student intended to sell. *Photo: Police provided*

Earlier, a female student in Hanoi befriended a stranger on social media. She was promised assistance with study abroad procedures, leading her to trust and comply with the scammer's demands.

On the evening of 11/3, the student took 114 "chi" of her family's gold, worth over 2 billion Vietnamese dong, to a gold shop on Trung Kinh Street to sell it.

Noticing several unusual signs, the gold shop owner called Major Nguyen Van Quang, the local police officer for Yen Hoa Ward Police. Major Quang, who was on patrol, immediately arrived to investigate and determined the student showed signs of psychological manipulation.

Police then halted the transaction, brought the student to the station to help stabilize her emotional state, and worked with her family to clarify the situation.

This marks the third time Major Nguyen Van Quang has directly identified and prevented similar incidents. Previously, in 10/2025 and 1/2026, he rescued two students who had been instructed by individuals impersonating police officers to sell gold and transfer money.

According to statistics, from 2020 until now, Vietnam has recorded over 24,000 online fraud cases with increasingly sophisticated tactics targeting victims' psychology, causing nearly 40 trillion Vietnamese dong in damages.