The incident occurred four days ago when the student received a call from someone claiming to be a police officer. This individual informed him he was involved in criminal money laundering.

After psychological manipulation, the scammers demanded the student transfer all family assets to the "investigative agency" to prove his innocence. Fearing repercussions, the victim took nearly 30 taels of gold from his family's safe, sold it for approximately 4 billion dong, and transferred the entire amount to the fraudsters.

This is a recurring tactic, yet many students continue to fall victim. Previously, two students in Hanoi and Cao Bang were also manipulated by scam groups, leading them to break into their family safes, take gold, and sell it.

A recently emerged variant of online fraud is the "online kidnapping" scheme. Criminals use technology to psychologically manipulate victims, forcing them to sever contact with the outside world, then extorting their families.

Since July 2025, coinciding with the university enrollment season, numerous students in major cities such as: Hanoi, TP HCM, Da Nang, Quang Ninh, Can Tho, and Dong Nai have fallen victim. Statistics from the Ministry of Public Security reveal that from mid-2024 to August 2025, 50 victims were successfully rescued. All were aged 18 to 22, primarily students, with females accounting for 90%.