Vietnamese tycoon in race to raise $9bn to avoid execution

Vietnamese spot tycoon Truong My Lan is successful a contention for her life.

On Tuesday, the 68-year-old volition perceive the verdict successful her entreaty against the decease condemnation handed down connected her successful April for masterminding the world’s biggest slope fraud.

It was a uncommon and shocking verdict - she is 1 of precise fewer women successful Vietnam to beryllium sentenced to decease for a achromatic collar crime.

The tribunal recovered she had secretly controlled Saigon Commercial Bank, the country’s 5th biggest lender, and taken retired loans and currency implicit much than 10 years done a web of ammunition companies, amounting to a full of $44 cardinal (£34.5 billion).

Of that prosecutors accidental $27 cardinal was misappropriated, and $12 cardinal was judged to person been embezzled, the astir superior fiscal transgression for which she was sentenced to death.

However, the instrumentality successful Vietnam states that if she tin wage backmost 75% of what she took, her condemnation volition beryllium commuted to beingness imprisonment.

During her proceedings successful April Truong My Lan, who had been chairwoman of the existent property firm, Van Thinh Phat Group, was sometimes defiant. But successful the recent hearings for her appeal against the condemnation she been much contrite.

She has said she was embarrassed to person been specified a drain connected the state, and that her lone thought was to wage backmost what she had taken.

Born into a Sino-Vietnamese household successful Ho Chi Minh City, Truong My Lan started arsenic a marketplace stall vendor, selling cosmetics with her mother. She began buying onshore and spot aft the Communist Party introduced economical betterment successful 1986. By the 1990s, she owned a ample portfolio of hotels and restaurants.

When she was convicted and sentenced successful April, she was the chairwoman of a salient existent property firm, Van Thinh Phat Group. It was a melodramatic infinitesimal successful the "Blazing Furnaces" anti-corruption run led by then-Communist Party Secretary-General, Nguyen Phu Trong.

All of the remaining 85 defendants were convicted. Four were sentenced to beingness successful jail, portion the remainder were fixed situation presumption ranging from 20 years to 3 years suspended. Truong My Lan's hubby and niece received jailhouse presumption of 9 and 17 years respectively.

The State Bank of Vietnam is believed to person spent galore billions of dollars recapitalising Saigon Commercial Bank to forestall a wider banking panic. The prosecutors argued that her crimes were "huge and without precedent" and did not warrant leniency.

Truong My Lan’s lawyers accidental she is moving arsenic accelerated arsenic she tin to find the $9 cardinal needed. But cashing successful her assets is proving difficult.

Some are luxury properties successful the Vietnamese capital, Ho Chi Minh City, which could, successful theory, beryllium sold rather quickly. Others are successful the signifier of shares oregon stakes successful different businesses oregon spot projects.

In each the authorities has identified much than a 1000 antithetic assets linked to the fraud. These person been frozen by the authorities for now. The BBC understands the tycoon has besides reached retired to friends to rise loans for her to assistance scope the target.

Her lawyers are arguing for leniency from the judges connected fiscal grounds. They accidental that portion she is nether condemnation of decease it volition beryllium hard for her to negociate the champion terms for selling her assets and investments, and truthful harder for her to rise $9 billion.

She tin bash overmuch amended if nether a beingness condemnation instead, they say.

“The full worth of her holdings really exceeds the required compensation amount,” lawyer Nguyen Huy Thiep told the BBC.

“However, these necessitate clip and effort to sell, arsenic galore of the assets are existent property and instrumentality clip to liquidate. Truong My Lan hopes the tribunal tin make the astir favourable conditions for her to proceed making compensation.”

Few expect the judges to beryllium moved by these arguments. If, arsenic expected, they cull her appeal, Truong My Lan volition successful effect beryllium successful a contention with the executioner to rise the funds she needs.

Vietnam treats the decease punishment arsenic a authorities secret. The authorities does not people however galore radical are connected decease row, though quality rights groups accidental determination are much than 1,000 and that Vietnam is 1 of the world’s biggest executioners.

Typically determination are agelong delays, often galore years earlier sentences are carried out, though prisoners are fixed precise small notice. If Truong My Lan tin retrieve the $9 cardinal earlier that happens, her beingness volition astir apt beryllium spared.