Four top managers of online marketplace muaban24.vn have been arrested
for alleged online trading scams and tax evasion.
Hanoi police Thursday issued
arrest warrants for the company’s chairman, Ngo Van Huy, and three vice
chairmen-cum-deputy general directors, Nguyen Tuan Minh, Nguyen Manh Ha, and Le
Van Cuong.
They had been investigated for
allegedly using computers, telecommunications networks, and the Internet or
digital devices to illegally appropriate others’ property.
Earlier, on Wednesday evening,
policemen from the Hanoi Police Department and the General Police Department
for High-Tech Crime Prevention (C50) under the Ministry of Public Security
simultaneously searched the residences of the four people, seizing many
documents to serve the investigation.
A leader of C50 told newswire
VnExpress that the General Police Department of Crime Prevention and his unit
have directed local police nationwide to quickly clarify the fraudulence of
MB24’s operation.
"It is estimated that after
just a year of operation, MB24 was present in dozens of provinces and cities.
Its members had to pay a total amount of some VND700 billion," he said.
Previously, three managers of
MB24 online trading training company, a part of the online marketplace
muaban24.vn, were arrested on similar charges.
The arrest warrant for the three
top managers of MB24’s branch in northern Phu Tho Province’s Viet Tri City was
issued on Thursday.
The three people are the branch
director, 27-year-old Truong Dinh Tuan, and the two vice directors, 36-year-old
Dang Trung Dung and 47-year-old Nguyen Ngoc Lan.
After examining the workplaces of
the suspects, the police have also seized many documents and computer content
relating to the crimes committed by the three Phu Tho branch managers.
MB24 runs an online business via
muaban24.vn in accordance with a license issued by the Ministry of Information
and Communications in June. On this website, MB24 opened many pavilions for
selling numerous products in the form of a multi-level business.
However, the site has never
conducted any goods purchases, instead focusing on expanding its customer
networks.
The primary purpose of most
people involved with the site is getting commissions by referring other people
to buy the virtual pavilions. Authorities have identified the business on this
website as not eligible for e-commerce business, while showing signs of tax
evasion.
Colonel Nguyen Van Vien, PX15
chief of Phu Tho Police Department, said as of July 27, the provincial branch
had nearly 15,000 virtual booths worth VND77 billion. In particular, there were
5,800 virtual shops with about VND29 billion in Viet Tri City.
Phu Tho police suspect the state
has lost VND3 billion due to tax evasion. Tuan told the police that he had been
rewarded VND1.4 billion by the company, while Dung had received some VND320
million for reward.
Many members of Muaban24 said
they had to pay VND5.2 million to purchase a virtual booth. With the
introduction of new participants, they are entitled to VND1.5 million as
commission. And so, with the multi-level model, senior members were promised
hundreds of millions of dong in monthly income.
When a MB24 member reaches the
VIP level, the income per month can be up to VND100 million, the dream of many
people.
This is also the reason why the
promises given by top managers become more attractive to newcomers. Many
people, who do not know anything about e- commerce, or even how to use a
computer, had also borrowed money or mortgaged property to buy one, or even
dozens, of MB24 virtual booths.
Farmers in the Central Highlands
province of Dak Lak have been at risk of losing all of their money since they
cannot trade after purchasing virtual booths there.
By coordinating with the central
police department for high-tech crime prevention to verify the criminal acts of
this company, Phu Tho police discovered that MB24 has branches in 34 provinces
and cities nationwide. The number of customers has surged to tens of thousands,
most of whom are victims of MB24.
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