On the afternoon of 27/5, the Nghe An provincial People's Court issued an initial verdict, sentencing Ly, 35, a resident of Hai Phong, to 14 years in prison for fraud and property appropriation under Article 174 of the Criminal Code.

In court, Ly admitted her inability to facilitate travel to South Korea but still provided fraudulent information to embezzle money. The defendant expressed deep remorse and requested leniency from the court.

Victims stated they trusted Ly because she held South Korean nationality, believing this would enable her to arrange their departure procedures. This belief led them to transfer money to her multiple times.

Defendant Ly in court. Photo: Hung Le

According to the indictment, Ly devised her scheme in 2023. Facing business losses and mounting debts, she decided to accept money from individuals interested in tourism or seasonal work in South Korea, with the intent to embezzle these funds.

To build credibility, Ly downloaded promotional images of South Korean tourism programs and flight tickets from the internet. She then hired individuals to alter this information as requested, paying 300,000 VND for each edit. These fabricated images, presented as visa exemption letters, flight tickets, and flight details, were subsequently sent to her victims.

However, after receiving the money, Ly failed to process any departure procedures. Instead, she used all the funds to repay her debts and for personal expenses.

One victim was a woman from Ha Tinh whose husband was already working in South Korea. She contacted Ly to arrange her departure. To establish trust, Ly requested her passport and portrait photos, along with personal information, then demanded a 200 million VND deposit. Trusting Ly, the victim transferred the money.

Ly initially informed the victim that her departure date would be 15/6/2023. However, she repeatedly postponed the date with various excuses, which ultimately led to the victim filing a complaint.

Authorities accused Ly of repeatedly employing these deceptive tactics to embezzle approximately 2,6 billion VND from multiple victims between May 2023 and October 2024.

Duc Hung