An employee of Vietnam Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Agribank) has been arrested for being involved in using fake gold as collateral to withdraw VND19 billion (USD904,761) from the bank.

Fake gold used as collateral to withdraw VND19 billion (USD904,761) from the bank

Before his arrest on December 18, Duong Thanh Tuan worked at the Dam Cam transaction office, under Agribank’s Cai Nuoc branch in Ca Mau Province. Tuan was detained along with his younger brother, Duong Van Gioi and Gioi’s friend, Phan Van Hai.

Gioi and Hai are close friends. According to the initial investigation, due to his debts, Hai told Gioi to ask for Tuan's help in using the collateral to get loan from the bank. Tuan agreed to help Hai.

Since 2009, Gioi and Hai have been buying fake gold and hired a number of farmers and students to bring the gold to the banking office where Tuan worked to get loans.

Since 2009, as many as 60 people brought this gold to the bank and received a total of more than VND19 billion. With the support by Tuan, the gold was verified as real.

After the investigation started, Tuan, Gioi and Hai turned themselves in and confessed on December 17.

The economic police board of Ca Mau Province determined that all the gold used as the collateral is fake.