Truong My Lan seen at the People’s High Court of Ho Chi Minh City on Nov. 25, 2024. Photo by VnExpress/Quynh Tran
Prosecutors on Monday reiterated their recommendation that property tycoon Truong My Lan be sentenced to death for embezzling funds from Saigon Commercial Bank (SCB), citing the “unprecedented” losses she caused.
In response to arguments from Lan’s lawyers that confiscated assets were sufficient to compensate SCB, prosecutors contended that many of these assets lack legal approvals, making their valuation uncertain.
They said that Lan needs to submit at least VND240 trillion (US$9.4 billion) to be considered for commutation, and even then, her case will be reviewed during the execution phase of the punishment, they told the People’s High Court of Ho Chi Minh City, where Lan is appealing her death sentence.
“If Lan collaborates extensively with SCB and legal agencies to sell her assets, the President of the country may consider commuting her sentence.”
For now, it is up to the judges to decide her punishment, prosecutors said.
“The losses in the case were especially large and unprecedented in history. It is unclear when these losses will be fully compensated,” they said, adding that new discoveries in the case were insufficient to grant Lan a commutation.
Prosecutors also argued that among 1,169 assets that Lan were linked to, 94% were bought after SCB was formed by mering three lenders.
Lan, the chairwoman of Van Thinh Phat who was a consultant to the bank, purchased them using SCB’s money because she indirectly held the majority of its shares, they added.
They therefore dismissed her lawyers’ claim that she should not be held accountable for VND125 trillion in loans recorded before the merger of the banks.
In April Lan was found guilty of masterminding a plan to embezzle VND677 trillion ($27 billion) from SCB.
Last month, in a separate trial, she was awarded a life sentence for “fraudulent appropriation of assets” through bond issuances and illegal cross-border money transfers among other crimes.
