On 23/9, Ho Chi Minh City Police's Economic Police Department (PC03) arrested Le Van Hien, 42, and 36 others for tax evasion and illegal invoice trading. Hien is suspected of leading the large-scale operation.

Some suspects in the ring. Photo: Ho Chi Minh City Police

The ring established or acquired 326 legal entities, referred to as "ghost companies", which issued over 178,000 value-added tax (VAT) invoices to more than 17,600 businesses across the country.

These invoices represented a total pre-tax value of goods and services exceeding 18,300 billion VND, with value-added tax (VAT) amounting to 1,585 billion VND. The total revenue generated by the scheme approached 20,000 billion VND.

This crackdown follows an initial investigation five months ago, which led to the charging of 12 suspects for illegal invoice issuance and trading. Police determined the ring operated from 12/2021 to 10/2025.

Ho Chi Minh City Police advise businesses to diligently verify the origin and legality of all input invoices. They urge companies not to purchase, sell, or use bogus invoices or those not linked to actual goods or service transactions.

By Pham Hai