Defendants at the trial on Tuesday. 4,830kg of gold were smuggled from Cambodia into Vietnam. VNA/VNS Photo Hong Giang
Seeing that the gold price in Vietnam was higher than in Cambodia, the defendants established two smuggling rings to import gold bars from the neighbouring country to sell to domestic gold shop owners. Investigations revealed that both rings smuggled a total of more than six tonnes of gold bars.
The trial began on Tuesday of a group of people accused of smuggling a large amount of gold from Cambodia into Vietnam, to take advantage of higher prices for the precious commodity, with the gang expected to make around $700,000 from the illicit deal.
The court heard that a gang planned to take advantage of the differential in gold prices in Vietnam, to smuggle more than six tonnes of gold bars over the border into several provinces.
The People’s Court of Ho Chi Minh City on Tuesday started the first hearings into the large-scale gold smuggling case that occurred in Tay Ninh Province, HCM City and several other localities.
Nguyen Minh Phụng, 43, from Binh Dinh Province, Nguyen Thi Ngoc Giau, 44, from Tay Ninh Province, Nguyen Thi Kim Phuong, 39, from Tay Ninh Province, and their accomplices are trialled for allegedly smuggling over six tonnes of the highly priced metal from Cambodia to Vietnam.
The trial, which is expected to last for three days, is being presided over by Judge Nguyen Thi Ha.
According to the case file, Phung had previously worked at a gold shop, dealing in gold, silver, and foreign currency exchange, and had connections in the jewellery industry in HCM City, Tay Ninh and Cambodia.
Noticing that the gold price in Vietnam was higher than in Cambodia, the defendant agreed and arranged to sell smuggled gold to domestic gold shop owners.
The indictment states that in 2022, Phung began establishing and operating a smuggling ring to buy and sell gold bars from Cambodia to Vietnam.
Phung would receive orders from domestic customers and contact counterparts in Cambodia to place orders. Giau was responsible for organising the transportation of money and gold across the border.
Giau, a border resident living near Chang Riec border gate in Tay Ninh Province, exploited border policies by hiding gold under ice-laden tricycles to smuggle it across the border.
Investigations revealed that from August 3 to September 28 of 2022, Phung and her associates smuggled 4,830kg of gold bars worth VNĐ6.644 trillion (US$260 million), making a profit of VNĐ17.6 billion ($697,000).
Phung profited VNĐ2.4 billion ($94,700), Giau profited VNĐ13.8 billion ($544,000), with the remaining split among the other 20 defendants.
The indictment determined that Phung sold 4,830kg of gold bars to many people, including 560kg to Huynh Minh Khanh (Khanh Kim Loan gold shop), 268kg to Nguyen Thi Minh (Kim Hien Binh Minh gold shop), 294kg to Dang Thi Thanh Hang, 1,828kg to 36 other customers and 1,804kg to unidentified retail customers. The investigation agency seized 76kg of gold.
Additionally, another gold smuggling ring, led by Nguyen Thi Kim Phuong (Giau's younger sister), smuggled 1,320kg of gold bars worth over VNĐ1.8 trillion (approximately US$70.9 million). Phuong profited over VNĐ3 billion ($119,000) and Giau VNĐ3.7 billion ($146,000).
Connected to the case, Dang Thi Thanh Hang (the owner of Phuc Hang gold shop) left the country before prosecution began, leading the Ministry of Public Security to issue a warrant for her arrest, with further action to be taken upon her capture.
Asia News Network (ANN)/Vietnam News
