Authorities inspect petrol station 436 Trần Khát Chân Street. — Photo dantri.com.vn |
HÀ NỘI —Hà Nội Police on Tuesday proposed that the municipal People’s Procuracy begins legal proceedings against 16 people relating to an incident of petrol fraud in the city.
The owners of two petrol stations located in Yên Viên Commune and 436 Trần Khát Chân Street and their staff were among those arrested.
On December 24 last year, the Market Watch Unit No 14, in co-ordination with the Hà Nội Police’s Division of Economic Security, found that two petrol stations were cheating customers with the help of electronic chips.
The two petrol stations used the chips to rig the display of fuel prices and quantities.
The petrol station employees controlled the chip from a distance, enabling them to sell less gas than the quantity displayed on the pump screen, and pocket about five per cent of every sale.
The police investigation showed that Nguyễn Thị Hồng Hạnh, 50, owner of the petrol station at 436 Trần Khát Chân under the Hà Nội Petrol Fuel Joint Stock Company, conspired with her 11 employees in the alleged fraud.
Specifically, two of Hạnh’s employees Trần Thanh Trình, 36, and Nguyễn Mạnh Hà, 33, proposed the scheme of using electronic chips to earn profits in 2014. Other employees at the petrol station agreed to fund the purchase of the chips. Trình then asked for help in buying and installing the chips at the 436 Trần Khát Chân petrol station.
Using this method, Hạnh earned VNĐ200 million (US$8,900), Trình made VNĐ191 million ($8,500) and Hà VNĐ152 million ($6,800). Other employees were able to earn around VNĐ150 million ($6,700) each from the fraud.
In May last year, Trình was assigned to run the Yên Viên petrol station. He used the same method to earn profits, and here was able to defraud customers of VNĐ120 million ($5,300).
The 16 people involved in the fraud collected more than VNĐ1.6 billion ($71,700) between them, and it has been requested that the money from the fraudulent trading be submitted to the State budget. — VNS