Ninh Binh Provincial Police said on November 2 that it had launched a criminal case, charged Nguyen Van Tuan, 37, and Tran Thi Hong Van, 32, and ordered their pre-trial detention on suspicion of smuggling.
Nguyen Van Tuan and Tran Thi Hong Van at the police station (Photo: Ninh Binh Police).
Tuan, who lives in Dong Van Ward, Ninh Binh Province, and Van, a resident of Nghia Do Ward, Hanoi, are accused of being part of a network importing used mobile phones from China for sale in Vietnam.
The case came to light after officers from the provincial police's economic crime division detected suspicious activity at Thanh Tuan Mobile, a phone shop at 289 Nguyen Huu Tien Street in Dong Van Ward, which was suspected of selling illegally imported second-hand phones.
Investigators said members of the network worked closely together, using foreign applications and borrowing the information and identities of foreign nationals to communicate, place orders, make payments and arrange shipments of large quantities of used phones from China to Vietnam.
The economic crime division, working with Ninh Binh's market surveillance authorities, inspected the shop and seized phones. Investigators also traced and recovered hundreds of second-hand devices that Tuan had already sold, including models from well-known brands.
Police said that although the phones carried famous brand names, most were not authorised for distribution in the Vietnamese market.
During questioning, Tuan and Van admitted that they had worked together to smuggle thousands of used mobile phones from China into Vietnam for sale since January 2025. The total value of the transactions is estimated at nearly VND 20 billion (approximately USD 760,000).
Ninh Binh police are continuing to expand the investigation.
