
Pho Duc Nam, better known as "Mr Pips", at police station. — Photo courtesy of Hanoi Police
The group was led by Pho Duc Nam, better known as "Mr Pips" on social media, especially TikTok.
Since 2021, Pho Duc Nam, 30, from Vung Tau City, Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province, and his associate Le Khac Ngo, from Hanoi's Bac Tu Liem District, conspired with a Turkish national operating out of Morgan Tower in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
They orchestrated their scam by instructing seven accomplices in Việt Nam to establish multiple shell companies in Hanoi, HCM City, and other provinces.
One such entity, ARTEX VINA Co., Ltd., headquartered in District 1, HCM City, operated 44 representative offices nationwide, including 24 in Hanoi.
Although these companies lacked licences to conduct securities or financial operations, they recruited approximately one thousand employees to run illegal forex and derivative trading activities.
To lure victims, the suspects developed and managed five English-language websites, including Alpha.com, Gtmx.com, Btfx.com, Enzofx.com, and Gkfx.com, which they falsely presented as reputable international trading platforms.
These sites were linked to bank accounts controlled by the group and connected to MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5, popular trading platforms for forex and securities worldwide.
Nam and Ngọc assigned responsibilities to their associates Đào Diệu Thúy, 27, from Quang Ninh Province's Cam Pha City and Tran Thi Cam Tu, 28, from Cam Xuyen District, Ha Tinh Province.
These associates were tasked with recruiting employees and organising the workforce into departments such as accounting, human resources, IT, business operations, and customer service.
Using platforms like Zoiper, Zalo, and Telegram, these departments coordinated to mislead victims and gain their trust.
Victims were initially guided to make small transactions, which appeared profitable and allowed withdrawals, fostering a sense of trust.
The suspects then employed various manipulative tactics to coerce victims into gradually increasing their investment.
When victims suffered losses or exhausted their accounts, the group continued to deceive them into transferring more funds under the pretext of recovering their losses.
This cycle persisted until victims were financially drained, at which point the suspects severed contact and appropriated the stolen funds.
On October 25, Hanoi Police, in collaboration with the Criminal Police Department, Cybersecurity and High-Tech Crime Prevention Department, and other units, dismantled this transnational criminal network.
Authorities have identified 2,661 victims nationwide and seized or frozen assets worth over VNĐ5,200 billion (US$211.8 million).
The Hanoi Police Investigation Agency initiated criminal proceedings for "Fraudulent appropriation of property," "Money laundering," "Failure to report a crime," and "Harbouring and consuming criminal assets."
A total of 31 individuals have been prosecuted, including 26 for fraud, three for money laundering, one for failing to report a crime, and one for harbouring criminal assets.
An international arrest warrant has been issued for fleeing Le Khac Ngo.
The police urged Ngọ to surrender and seek leniency under the law.
The case is under further investigation.