Phu Tho provincial police said on October 10 that preliminary investigations had uncovered a group of foreign nationals who allegedly posed as bank employees and called businesses in Japan to trick them into surrendering control of their accounts. The stolen money was then transferred out of Japan through contacts in Vietnam.
In one case, on March 10, 2025, 15 Japanese citizens were defrauded into transferring a total of about 707 million yen to three bank accounts belonging to companies named DEEP IMPACT, VENTURE INVESSTORS and LUNA DEVELOPMENT, which were allegedly controlled by the fraud group.
The money was subsequently moved through multiple intermediary accounts, converted into cryptoassets including USDT and ETH, and transferred back to criminal associates overseas. Those involved in the transactions reportedly received commissions of one to two per cent of the amount transferred each time.
Police said the network had operated for several years, using numerous bank accounts and cryptocurrency transactions to conceal the origins of the funds. The investigation was complicated by the fact that the alleged crimes took place in Japan from early 2025, while those involved had destroyed documents and evidence and prepared measures to evade law enforcement.
Based on the evidence collected, the Investigation Police Agency of Phu Tho Provincial Police charged seven suspects.
Vu Tung Linh, 33, from Phu Tho; Le Duc Hung, 32, from Thanh Hoa; and Nguyen Van Nam, 28, from Phu Tho, were remanded in custody on money laundering charges.
The four other suspects, Nguyen Thanh Huyen, 29, from Hanoi; Le Thi Binh, 34, from Bac Ninh; Huynh Thi Kim Dung, 32, from Phu Tho; and Nguyen Thi Thanh Huyen, 34, from Hanoi, were barred from leaving their places of residence while being investigated for illegally transferring currency across national borders.
During searches of locations linked to the case, officers seized six smartphones, a tablet, a Mercedes-Benz car, three savings books with a combined value of VND 6 billion (about USD 231,000), five land-use rights certificates, and numerous bars and pieces of yellow and silver metal.
Phu Tho police said the investigation was continuing to establish the roles of other people who may have been involved.
