Trial of "smuggling boss" Nguyen Thi Kim Hanh and 24 accomplices

Defendants at the first instance trial on February 24, 2023

This is the third time the case has been brought to trial. Previously, after nearly two weeks of the first-instance trial, on the morning of February 24, 2023, the People's Court of An Giang province decided to postpone the trial and return the case file for further investigation because it found that the Investigation Agency had not collected sufficient evidence to prove the defendants' criminal acts.

On July 28, the People's Court of An Giang province continued to bring the case to trial. However, at the trial, lawyers for the defendants Nguyen Thi Kim Hanh, Tran Thi Thao Trang, Truong Van Bao, Nguyen Hong Cam, Doan Minh Phuoc, Tran Thanh Liem, Tran Van Hai, Nguyen Van Minh, Vo Minh Tam, and Nguyen Hoang Ut submitted a request to postpone the trial. To ensure the legitimate rights and interests of the defendants, the Trial Panel of the People's Court of An Giang province decided to postpone the trial.

On the morning of August 9, the Court announced the indictment and separated the defendants for questioning.

In the case, Nguyen Thi Kim Hanh was identified as the ringleader, who hired and managed the entire operation of transporting US dollars (USD) to Cambodia and received 51 kg of gold, worth nearly 72 billion VND, to transfer to Vietnam.

The defendants: Nguyen Thi Kim Hanh, Mai Thi Ngoc Phan (born in 1979, residing in An Phu district, An Giang province), Pham Tan Loc (born in 1986, residing in Chau Doc city, An Giang province) and 21 other defendants were prosecuted for the crime of "Smuggling".

The defendants: Truong Van Liem (born in 1966), Nguyen Thi Kim Hanh, Pham Tan Loc, and Mai Thi Ngoc Phan were all prosecuted for the crime of "Illegally transporting currency across the border".

According to the indictment, at about 12:40 p.m. on October 30, 2020, An Giang Provincial Police patrolling the Vietnam-Cambodia border in Vinh Nguon ward, Chau Doc city discovered Nguyen Hoang Ut driving a motorboat (a motorboat made of composite plastic material) from Cambodia to group 7, Vinh Chanh 1 hamlet, Vinh Nguon ward, moored on Tuy Bien road.

At the same time, Nguyen Van Minh, Tran Van Hai, Nguyen Huu Phuoc, and Vo Van Trung walked to Manh's wharf and took 3 nylon bags containing more than 50.9 kg of 99.99% pure gold and put them on two motorbikes parked on the shore. The joint force arrested Hai with the evidence, while Minh, Ut, Phuoc, and Trung escaped.

On the same day, October 30, 2020, Nguyen Van Minh, Vo Minh Tam, and Phan Van Bo came to Chau Doc City Police Station to surrender and confessed to illegally transporting gold from Cambodia to Vietnam with Ut.

The investigation determined that: Tran Thi Thao Trang, Nguyen Thi Tuyet Van, Nguyen Ngoc Dai Nghia, Truong Van Liem, Truong Thai Nguyen, the gold shop owners, and Duong Cong Cuong had an agreement to transfer USD from Vietnam to Cambodia and buy gold from Tuot, Hia, Pha Na (currently living in Cambodia) to transfer to Vietnam.

Tuot, Hia, Pha Na hired Hanh to transport USD and gold to Van, Nghia, Cuong and Nguyen so that Nguyen could deliver them to Trang with a transportation fee of 70 USD for every 100,000 USD, and 15 USD for each kilogram of gold.

To transport USD and gold across the Vietnam - Cambodia border, Hanh hired and assigned Mai Thi Ngoc Phan and Pham Tan Loc to directly contact Nguyen, Cuong, Van, and Nghia to receive USD, deliver gold, and receive transportation fees. Loc and Bach Van counted the amount of USD and gold, then together with Hoang Ut, Vo Van Trung, Nguyen Huu Phuoc, Tran Van Hai, and Tran Van Minh transported USD to Cambodia and received gold to transport back to Hanh's house to deliver to the gold shops.

While transporting nearly 51kg of gold from Cambodia to Vietnam, the subjects were caught red-handed by An Giang Provincial Police.

According to VNA