The Hanoi People’s Procuracy in Vietnam has issued indictments against three individuals involved in a fraud case targeting Asia Commercial Bank (ACB), where forged checks and falsified banking documents were used to withdraw funds from corporate accounts.

The defendants include:

• Nguyen Dinh Chi (born in 2002), charged with fraud, misappropriation of property, and forging official seals and documents.
• Le Cong Tuan (born in 1988), charged with forging official seals and documents.
• Tran Khanh Huyen (born in 2001), a former employee at an ACB branch in Hai Phong City, charged with intentionally disclosing confidential customer information.

Case Details

According to investigators, Nguyen Dinh Chi devised a scheme in late 2023 to steal funds from corporate accounts held at ACB in order to repay personal debts and cover living expenses.

Through the messaging application Zalo, Chi became acquainted with Tran Khanh Huyen, who was working at the bank at the time. Despite strict banking confidentiality regulations, Huyen provided him with sensitive customer information, including:

• Corporate account numbers
• Official company seal samples
• Signatures of company representatives

Forged Banking Documents

Using the leaked information, Chi created counterfeit seals bearing the names and titles of company executives and prepared a series of forged banking documents, including:

• Four fraudulent requests for checkbooks
• Four forged checks
• Two forged authorization letters
• Two forged payment orders

He also recruited another accomplice to impersonate employees of two companies during certain banking transactions.

Amount Misappropriated

The main suspect forged a total of 12 banking documents in an attempt to steal funds from six companies holding accounts with ACB.

According to the indictment, more than VND 1 billion was fraudulently withdrawn, while an additional VND 265 million was transferred through forged payment orders. The stolen funds were subsequently spent on personal expenses.

Key Takeaways

The case highlights the significant risks associated with internal data breaches within financial institutions and underscores the critical importance of maintaining customer confidentiality and data protection standards.

Investigators concluded that the leaked customer information was the key enabler that allowed the suspects to execute the forgery, fraud, and misappropriation scheme.