On 9/1, Lai Chau Provincial Police announced the arrest and temporary detention of Nguyen Thi Nga, 45, from Thai Nguyen. She faces charges of exploiting democratic freedoms to infringe upon the legitimate interests of organizations and individuals, and of fraud to appropriate assets.

Nguyen Thi Nga at the investigative agency. Photo: Police provided

According to the initial investigation, numerous households affected by the Ban Chat hydropower project resettlement in Lai Chau province contacted Nga through her TikTok account "nguyen thi nga" to seek assistance with complaints regarding compensation and resettlement support.

Nga then posted many videos related to the complaints and grievances. In these videos, Nga appeared directly, introduced herself, and spoke with residents. Police determined that Nga's statements contained much unverified information, causing misunderstanding and public resentment.

In addition to posting videos, Nga allegedly proactively offered to "handle affairs" for six individuals, who represented 184 protesting households. She provided false information about having connections with leaders and officials from the Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuracy, and the Ministry of Public Security. Nga demanded that residents seeking her help contribute money for expenses.

To build trust, Nga often asked residents to hand over money directly in front of the Supreme People's Court or Supreme People's Procuracy. After receiving the money, she would instruct everyone to wait outside, take the money in alone, and then return to announce that the "matter was resolved". In reality, Nga is accused of appropriating these funds for personal use.

Exhibits seized. Photo: Police provided

However, over the past 6 months, Nga had not submitted any petitions from the households concerning the Ban Chat hydropower resettlement project to the authorities. Based on the victims' denunciations, police initially determined that Nga had appropriated over 1.5 billion VND.