Seven culprits are arrested after a robbery. The police are expanding their investigation into the robbery. — VNA/VNS Photo

HCM CITY — A gang of bandits who stole more than VNĐ35 billion (US$1.5 million) in HCM City has been arrested thanks to tip-offs from the public, the Ministry of Public Security announced on Monday.

The gang included more than ten members from different localities, according to the police. They were acquaintances of the victims, knowing that the targets kept a lot of money in their e-wallets. 

The gang investigated the victims’ itinerary and chose a secluded location to commit the crime. 

In mid-May, a family of three driving on a road leading to Long Thành-Dầu Giây Highway crashed into another car. 

When the driver, his wife and child got out of the car to resolve the incident, two groups of gangsters appeared, pushing the man’s wife and child into a car and him in another, before destroying the victim’s dash camera. 

In the next two hours, the victims were tortured and forced to hand over their mobiles, provide ID and passwords to transfer money from an e-wallet to the gang’s account. 

Later, they left the family in an isolated area in District 2.  

During the investigation, the police noticed that while assaulting the victims, the culprits attempted to cause minimal physical damage. Moreover, the gang only focused on high-value assets. 

As of Sunday, seven were arrested, including Hồ Ngọc Tài, 31, Trần Ngọc Hoàng, 37, Nguyễn Văn Đức, 24, Trịnh Tuấn Anh, 35, Bùi Quang Chung, 24, Mai Xuân Phốt, 28 and Trương Chí Hải, 31. 

Hải was also found illegally storing drugs. 

According to culprits’ testimonies, they thought the man caused them to lose money therefore they planned revenge. 

The police are now conducting further investigations into the case. — VNS