On 9/6, Doan Thi Bich Ngoc, 41, residing in Long Bien, was sentenced by the Hanoi People's Court to 16 years in prison for property fraud.
Beginning in 2015, Ngoc approached three women who shared a common interest in feng shui and rituals for family peace.
Ngoc then fabricated a story about a renowned feng shui master in Ninh Binh named Mr. Vuong, known as Vuong "Gu". Ngoc claimed "Master Vuong" was a friend of her father, possessed a great reputation, and only offered feng shui consultations to individuals of high social standing.
Consequently, he never met clients in person or took phone calls, communicating solely through Zalo messages or via a close associate, who was Ngoc herself.
Investigation results revealed that Ngoc had created a Zalo account named "Van Vuong", impersonating the "master" to deceive her victims. Through this method, all demands for money and offerings were presented under the guise of a spiritual guru, making it difficult for the victims to refuse.
The manipulation of the first victim, Ms. Nhung, spanned from 3/2018 to mid-2024. "Master Vuong" extended beyond feng shui advice, continuously requesting money transfers for seemingly charitable and spiritual purposes. These included purchasing feng shui items, making offerings, performing rituals to ward off bad luck, and even sending food to monks in Nepal and India.
In total, Ms. Nhung "donated" nearly 3 billion dong.
The second victim was a 47-year-old woman hoping to conceive, whose vulnerability Ngoc exploited. Aware of Ms. Trang's difficulties with in vitro fertilization (IVF), Ngoc befriended her, claiming to be one disciple who had successfully had a child with "Master Vuong's" help. From 2019 to 2024, Ms. Trang transferred more than 2.3 billion dong to Ngoc.
In relationships with regular cosmetic buyers, such as Ms. Tra, Ngoc used the fake "Master Vuong" Zalo account to entice her into transferring 64 million dong for a peace ritual.
By 6/2024, after numerous money transfers to "Master Vuong", the three women grew suspicious and ceased sending funds.
They visited the real Mr. Vuong at his home in Ninh Binh province to investigate, only to discover he was a free laborer who did not use Zalo, did not have a bank account, and did not receive money from anyone for rituals or feng shui items. He confirmed knowing Ngoc's father but stated that she had never met him for fortune-telling or feng shui, nor had she contacted him to introduce anyone.
Ngoc currently stands accused of defrauding the three victims of over 4.6 billion dong.
Hai Thu
