Wife of 'Mr. Hunter' Le Khac Ngo arrested in Thailand

Ngo Thi Theu, wife of 'Mr. Hunter' Le Khac Ngo, has been arrested in Thailand in a joint operation by Hanoi police and Interpol.

At the Ministry of Public Security's press conference on July 7th, Hanoi Police Director, Lieutenant General Nguyen Thanh Tung, announced the arrest of Ngo Thi Theu. He stated that Theu is currently caring for a young child, which is delaying her extradition to Vietnam.

"We apprehended her just in time, as she was preparing to flee to Turkey," Tung said. "We anticipate gathering valuable information and recovering more assets upon her return to Vietnam."

Authorities also announced the arrest of Nguyen Thi Thuy, 43, the accountant of Pho Duc Nam, also known as TikToker Mr. Pips. Hanoi police have also summoned over 1,100 individuals connected to the case.

Tung expressed his concern over the involvement of numerous students and young adults, who were aware of Mr. Pips' fraudulent trading platforms but failed to report them. Police plan to categorize and take strict action against these individuals.

According to Tung, police have identified 571 victims and are urging others to come forward. "Many mistakenly believe their investment losses are due to stock market fluctuations and are hesitant to report," Tung explained. "However, we urge victims to cooperate as we have recovered significant funds that will be returned to them."

Lieutenant General Nguyen Thanh Tung, Director of Hanoi Police, at the press conference. Photo: Pham Du

Lieutenant General Nguyen Thanh Tung, Director of Hanoi Police, at the press conference. Photo: Pham Du

In addition to calling for Le Khac Ngo's surrender, Hanoi police have issued an international arrest warrant for a Turkish national believed to be the mastermind behind the scam.

Investigators have also seized more properties, seven luxury cars, and 1.2 million Singapore dollars (approximately 24 billion Vietnamese dong) deposited by Mr. Pips in a Singaporean bank. This brings the total value of seized assets and funds in the case to 5,315 billion Vietnamese dong.

Previously, investigators seized 316 billion Vietnamese dong from bank accounts, savings books worth over 200 billion Vietnamese dong, 69 billion Vietnamese dong in cash, 2.3 million USD, 890 SJC gold bars, 246 kg of raw gold, 31 luxury cars, 59 luxury watches worth around 300 billion Vietnamese dong, and froze transactions on 125 properties.

Le Khac Ngo before his arrest.

The criminal network operated by Pho Duc Nam and Le Khac Ngo (aka Mr. Hunter, currently wanted internationally) has been active since 2021. They created English-language websites disguised as reputable international foreign exchange platforms. These websites were programmed to link to bank accounts controlled by Nam's group.

Hanoi police describe this as Vietnam's largest foreign exchange and securities fraud case. Many victims were lured by the opulent lifestyles of Nam and Ngo, and their desire for quick riches made them easy targets.