Former TrustBank general director arrested

Two other defendants, Lâm Kim Dung, former director of Lam Giang Real Estate JSC company, and Nguyễn Kim Thanh, former deputy head of TrustBank’s Investment Division, were also arrested on charges of “abusing trust to appropriate property”.

Earlier, Hứa Thị Phấn, former senior advisor of the management board of Trust Bank, and former chairwoman of the management board of Phú Mỹ Investment and Development JSC, was charged with "abusing trust to appropriate property".

According to the indictment, in 2009 and 2010 Phấn abused her holding of nearly 85 per cent of the bank’s charter capital to take over the management of all of Trust Bank’s activities.

She instructed TrustBank to illegally invest VNĐ1.038 trillion (US$46 million) into four real estate projects, including the Phú Mỹ Garden II in Mỹ Yên Commune in Bến Lức District in the southern province of Long An, invested in by Phú Mỹ Investment and Development JSC; Star City and Go-Go City in Nhà Bè District, invested in by Phấn’s company, Lam Giang Real Estate JSC company, and Lâm Kim Dung, former director.

The Phú Mỹ Garden II project has been withdrawn, while the Start City and Go-Go City projects have not finished the legal paperwork although the time for investment has ended.

In addition, Phấn instructed TrustBank to invest in Tân Đông Hiệp B Industrial Park in the southern province of Bình Dương, with Phú Mỹ Investment and Development JSC as the investor.

According to the indictment, all of the VNĐ1.038 trillion from the TrustBank given to these companies was not invested in projects, but instead was used by Phấn for personal purposes. — VNS