Beverage tycoon Tran Qui Thanh appeals 8-year jail sentence in $41M fraud - VnExpress International

By Hai Duyen &nbspMay 22, 2024 | 06:55 pm PT

Tran Qui Thanh, chairman of beverage manufacturer Tan Hiep Phat, seen at the People's Court of Ho Chi Minh City in April 2024. Photo by VnExpress/Thanh Tung

Tran Qui Thanh, chairman of beverage company Tan Hiep Phat, has appealed his eight-year prison sentence in a US$41-million fraud case, saying the sentence was too harsh.

His daughter deputy CEO of the company, Tran Uyen Phuong, has also appealed her four-year sentence. The details of their appeals have not been made public.

Thanh, 71, received his sentence last month for "abuse of trust to appropriate assets." His other daughter Tran Ngoc Bich, 40, was sentenced to three years in prison. The trio also have to pay a fine of VND100 million each.

Thanh and his daughters gave loans against collateral to many people at an interest rate of 3% per month between January 2019 and November 2020.

But instead of loan contracts, they coerced them into signing sale contracts at prices significantly lower than the actual value of the collateral.

Even when the borrowers paid back the money with interest, Thanh would refuse to return the assets on various pretexts, including claiming they had forfeited their repurchase rights due to contract breaches.

The trio swindled two property projects and 35 land lots worth a total of VND1.048 trillion from four individuals in this manner.

The court identified Thanh as the principal perpetrator of the frauds, with his daughters acting on his guidance.

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