Members of the biggest loan shark gang in the country receive 99 years in prison at the first instance trial in Thanh Hóa Province on Tuesday. — VNA/VNS Photo Nguyễn Nam

THANH HÓA — The People's Court in Thanh Hóa Province has handed down a total jail sentence of 99 years to 21 people involved in a loan shark gang.

This is considered the biggest loan shark gang, known as ‘black credit’, led by Nguyễn Đức Thành, who were lending money and demanding payback at extortionate rates.

At the first instance trial on Tuesday, Thành received ten years and six months in prison for his role in the operation.

Ngô Văn Chương, a gang member, was sentenced to 16 years in prison and the remaining defendants were sentenced to between 18 months and ten years for the same charge.

In July 2017, Thành and Nguyễn Cao Thắng established a company without a licence named Nam Long Financial Company.

The company was located in District 1 in HCM City and was directed by Thành.

Thành also established company branches in 63 provinces and cities nationwide.

From late 2017 to June 2018, Thành and his gang members lent money to around 95 people with total loans worth more than VNĐ32 billion. They earned VNĐ8.6 billion from the deals.

At court, Thành and his accomplices were also tried on charges of deliberately causing injuries and illegally detaining people.

On July 9, 2018, Thành directed his company's staff to attack Nguyễn Văn Minh, a company debt collector, when he used the company's motorbike to collect a debt of VNĐ16.5 million and then fled.

Minh was then illegally detained for 10 days at a property belonging to the company in Thanh Hóa City.

He died after being hospitalised due to multiple injuries. — VNS