Investigators search the Institute of Educational Management Sciences (IEMS). — Photo courtesy of Phú Thọ Newspaper and Radio-Television Station.

PHÚ THỌ — Authorities in northern Việt Nam have dismantled a large-scale fraud ring accused of illegally organising English language tests and issuing certificates to tens of thousands of people, earning an estimated VNĐ200 billion (US$7.6 million) in illicit profits.

Police in Phú Thọ Province stated that they had coordinated with the Ministry of Public Security’s Internal Political Security Department to uncover the operation of Institute of Educational Management Sciences (IEMS), which allegedly ran unlawful English examinations and granted certificates without legal authorisation.

Investigators have launched criminal proceedings and detained three suspects on charges of fraud and appropriation of property – Đỗ Văn Mạnh, 44, chairman of the IEMS; Đặng Thị Huyền, 30, an employee of the institute; and Jayaprakash Ethamukkalam, 40, an Indian national linked to Bright Online LLC Academy based in Hà Nội.

According to investigators, Mạnh began working with several foreign associates in 2020 to transform an online English learning and testing platform into an organisation branded as “Bright Online LLC Academy”, which claimed to issue English certificates aligned with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR).

Police said the organisation was not licensed in Việt Nam to recruit candidates, organise exams or issue English certificates under the CEFR system.

Despite this, the group allegedly signed cooperation agreements and continued enrolling candidates and conducting online examinations.

The ring is accused of falsely advertising the legal validity and recognition of its certificates, claiming they were equivalent to CEFR qualifications and Việt Nam's six-level foreign language competency framework in order to attract candidates.

Examination fees reportedly ranged from as much as VNĐ2 million (about $80) to VNĐ18 million (over $680), depending on certificate levels from A1 to C1.

Initial findings showed that Bright Online LLC was in fact a company registered in the state of Delaware, the United States, in 2020, providing online English learning and assessment services but lacking authority under US regulations to organise examinations or issue recognised foreign language certificates.

Certificate templates, embossed seals and signatures purportedly belonging to Bright Online LLC officials however were produced in Việt Nam at Mạnh’s direction.

From 2020 until now, the group allegedly organised around 125 examination sessions involving approximately 80,000 candidates, generating nearly VNĐ200 billion in illegal profits.

The investigation is continuing.

Police in Phú Thọ have urged agencies, organisations and individuals to review any foreign language certificates issued through cooperation between IEMS and the organisation involved, and to provide relevant information to support the investigation. — VNS