Tuyen Quang police thwart 136 million‑dong Zalo fraud scheme

In mid‑June, the provincial police in Tuyen Quang, Vietnam, intervened in two separate online scams conducted via the Zalo messaging app. The first victim, L.V.T, was lured by fraudsters posing as a logistics client and later a metal‑working supplier. They convinced him to transfer 136.8 million VND as a deposit for machinery transport and a supposed purchase of iron beds, threatening that the money was held by the tax authority and would be released only after further payment. After noticing irregularities, L.V.T reported the case to the local police, who examined the calls, messages, QR codes and forged invoices, identified the scheme as a new type of fraud, and warned the victim to cease all transactions.

A second case involved P.M.T, who received a call from someone impersonating a Hanoi police officer and was asked to send personal identification documents and bank cards through Zalo for a supposed drug‑trafficking investigation. Recognizing the signs of a scam, her son reported the incident to the Ngoc Duong police station, which confirmed the operation as a common online fraud and advised residents to ignore such demands.

Both incidents were stopped before the perpetrators could obtain any money, illustrating the police’s rapid response and public awareness efforts in combating cyber‑fraud.