An officer from the Investigative Police Agency of HCM City announced the initiation of criminal proceedings against some of the individuals charged with forging seals or documents of State agencies and organisations.  — Photos courtesy of HCM City Police

HCM CITY — Police in HCM City on Sunday announced they have arrested and initiated criminal proceedings against nine individuals for allegedly forging seals and documents of State agencies and organisations.

According to police, the suspects were apprehended in the act on October 15, following an intensive investigation by HCM City’s economic investigative police division to verify information and gather evidence.

Authorities also confiscated over 670 counterfeit seals and various equipment and vehicles allegedly used to produce and deliver the fake documents.

Hoàng Nhật Vũ, 36, a resident of the city’s Dĩ An Ward, was identified as the alleged ringleader of the operation. Investigators allege Vũ oversaw the forgery, brokering, transport and distribution of the counterfeit documents.

Vũ’s residence was identified as the location where these documents were produced.

Preliminary investigations revealed that the suspects allegedly produced tens of thousands of forged documents across various categories, including academic diplomas, professional practice and technical certificates, equipment inspection certificates, vehicle registration documents and driver’s licences. 

They also allegedly generated illicit profits amounting to billions of Vietnamese đồng.

The counterfeit seals confiscated by the police during the investigation.

According to police, the suspects used anonymous accounts on social media platforms and messaging applications, as well as unregistered phone numbers, to contact customers to avoid detection by authorities.

They also avoided direct contact with buyers, using aliases and false personal information to dispatch the forged documents via postal services or delivery apps.

When delivering the forged documents in person, they would conceal their faces and change their modes of transport, timing and routes to avoid being tracked or discovered, police said.

For financial transactions, the suspects allegedly purchased bank accounts registered to other individuals sold illegally on social media and used them to receive money, which would be routed through various intermediary accounts to obscure the identity of the actual beneficiary.

According to the police, these tactics showed that the suspects made serious efforts to conceal their identities, transactions and financial flows.

As further investigations are underway, HCM City Police urged any individuals who had contacted, commissioned, traded, brokered or used forged documents to come forward and cooperate in the investigation. — VNS