Central bank official gets life imprisonment for receiving $5.2M bribes in Truong My Lan trial
Do Thi Nhan, head of the banking inspection department under the State Bank of Vietnam, seen at the People’s Court of Ho Chi Minh City on April 11, 2024. Photo by VnExpress/Thanh Tung
Do Thi Nhan, head of the banking inspection department under the State Bank of Vietnam, received life imprisonment on Thursday for taking $5.2 million in bribes to cover the wrongdoing at Saigon Commercial Bank.
Nhan received the money from SCB through CEO Vo Tan Hoang Van to prevent it from being put under special control by the central bank, judges said at the People’s Court of Ho Chi Minh City.
She met twice with Van Thinh Phat chairwoman Truong My Lan, who had total control over SCB leaders, and made deals with her to cover up SCB’s ailing financial situation, judges said.
She should be punished with the highest sentence (death) but because she had submitted in full the money taken and because her family had made major contributions to the country, she instead got life sentence.
Her boss Nguyen Van Hung, deputy chief inspector of the SBV, was sentenced to 11 years in prison for receiving bribes.
Hung took money from SCB and ordered the inspection team to cover the wrongdoings at SCB. He made false reports of the bank’s situation to leaders of the central bank and the government, judges said.
He, however, has been sincere in his testimonies and has no prior criminal record. His family have made contributions to the country. These are considered mitigating factors in his sentence, judges added.
Lan, 68, was given death sentence for crimes of bribery, violating banking regulations and embezzlement.
From 2012 to 2022 Lan and her accomplices obtained 2,500 loans and caused losses of VND677 trillion ($27 billion) to the bank.
She was the mastermind in the long-term scheme and committed elaborate and organized crimes, causing irrevocable consequences, judges said.
She is ordered to compensate SCB VND673.8 trillion.
