Continuing to present, Truong My Lan said that as a businessman, his knowledge of the law is certainly limited, so how can he understand the charges and actions that the Procuracy has prosecuted. Ms. Lan asked the jury to listen to the defense opinions of her lawyers and her own defense opinions to reconsider the charges of Property Embezzlement and Bribery.
She also hoped the jury would consider businesses borrowing from SCB among the 1,284 loans (worth about 300,000 billion). According to her, this amount of money can completely eliminate the money allegedly appropriated by the defendant.
Chairman of Van Thinh Phat Group said that during the days of the trial, the defendant was always serious and accepted his responsibility for the act of violating lending regulations of credit institutions, asking the jury not to consider it. The defendant is the leader and mastermind in this case.
The defendant also added that the failure in the process of restructuring SCB Bank “made my heart bleed. It’s not that I did it badly, I did it to the last level.” Because SCB is where she and her family put all their heart and soul to develop.
In the past, the defendant’s family was always reunited and united, but now in the case of many people going to prison, the family is torn apart, everyone goes their separate ways, not knowing if they will ever have the chance to meet again or not. Let’s have another meal together or not.
“On the prison bus, from the court to the prison, I just looked up at my relatives on the side of the road… I just wished I could catch the waving hands of my relatives on the side of the road or through the TV screen to find them. My nephew, husband, relatives. My heart is broken. After all, I am also a woman. My pain cannot be expressed in words“, the defendant said.
Ms. Lan asked the jury to consider, based on lenient handling and humane criminal policies, to mitigate her husband, Mr. Chu Lap Co, and her nephew, Truong Hue Van, because they only followed their opinions because of their trust. of her and now she is stuck in legal trouble.
Previously, on March 19, the representative of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Procuracy asked the jury to sentence defendant Truong My Lan to 20 years in prison for bribery, and 19 – 20 years in prison for violating regulations on bank operations. death penalty for property embezzlement. General penalty is death.
The indictment of the Supreme People’s Procuracy states that from 2012 to October 2022, Ms. Truong My Lan acquired and held 85 – 91.5% of SCB shares. From then on, the defendant became a shareholder with “power” to direct, operate, and manipulate all of SCB’s activities to serve his various purposes.
Chairman of Van Thinh Phat Group and his accomplices are accused of carrying out a series of actions including: selecting and placing their trusted personnel in key positions at SCB; established a number of units under SCB specialized in lending and disbursement at the request of Truong My Lan; establishing and using thousands of “ghost” companies, hiring many individuals; colluding with individuals leading many related businesses to commit crimes.
Truong My Lan and his accomplices colluded with many appraisal companies to falsely increase the value of secured assets; creating a large number of false loan applications to withdraw money from SCB; Set up a withdrawal plan, “cut off” cash flow after disbursement; selling bad debt, selling deferred credit to reduce outstanding credit debt, reduce bad debt, to hide violations; Bribing and influencing people with positions and powers in State agencies to violate official duties.
Since then, Truong My Lan and his accomplices, with different positions and roles, committed many crimes of property infringement, the Bank’s operations, and the proper operation of State agencies.
Hoang Tho