Hanoi Police have officially arraigned Nguyen Minh Thi and a number of foreign accomplices, charging them with schemes to defraud hundreds of millions of Vietnam Dong via the Internet.

In March 2013, the Investigation Agency under the Ministry of Public Security commenced criminal investigations of Nguyen Minh Thi, suspecting him of misappropriating property through swindling. Thi was residing in An Binh ward, Bien Hoa City, Dong Nai province at the time.

On April 29, 2014, police also commenced criminal investigations against Oshanugor James Anyasi from Nigeria – one of Thi’s accomplices.

Initial investigations show when Thi studied in Malaysia in 2010 he met two Nigerian nationals: Oryewhere Christian Karie (O.Christ), and Oriame Orias Ehis (Lucker). Thi returned to Vietnam in August 2012 and coordinated with these subjects to carry out swindles targeting Vietnamese women.

The foreigners called themselves by different names and used false nationalities in online chatting to make their acquaintance with these women.

They told their friends that they had sent valuable gifts, including jewelries, mobile phones, gold and diamond to them via transport companies outside Vietnam.

They told the victims that their parcel had been kept at an airport, and asked the receivers to pay around US$550-15,000 for customs officers in exchange for the goods.

In September 2012, Thi made the acquaintance of James Anyasi Oshanugor and together with O.Christ and Lucker to carry out phising.

Since 2012, they have successfully conducted at least 13 swindling cases, appropriating hundreds of millions of Vietnam dong from Vietnamese women.

VOV/VNN