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Straits Times
07-07-2025
- Straits Times
Residential block blaze in Vietnam kills 8, including children
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox A blaze that tore through an apartment block in Vietnam's southern business hub of Ho Chi Minh City killed eight people, including two children, local authorities said on July 7. The fire was sparked late on July 6 on the ground floor of a five-storey apartment block, with all eight fatalities due to smoke inhalation, Ho Chi Minh City authorities said in a statement. Residents battled the flames with fire extinguishers as blasts were heard from inside the property, before emergency service crews arrived, according to media reports. 'There were shouts for help from the apartment. Several residents on higher floors had to jump down to escape. It was terrible,' a neighbour told the state-run Thanh Nien newspaper. Authorities said the cause of the fire was still under investigation. Deadly blazes have recently resulted in a string of high-profile arrests and prosecutions in Vietnam. Eight people were jailed i n 2025 over a 2023 Hanoi apartment fire that killed 56 people, in the country's deadliest blaze in two decades. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Construction starts on Cross Island Line Phase 2; 6 MRT stations in S'pore's west ready by 2032 Singapore New SkillsFuture requirements by April 2026 to mandate regular training for adult educators Singapore askST Jobs: Facing intrusive demands from your employer? Here's what you can do Singapore MPs should not ask questions to 'clock numbers'; focus should be improving S'poreans' lives: Seah Kian Peng Singapore Sequencing and standards: Indranee on role of Leader of the House Tech Hackathons produce scam simulation tool for education, platform identifying birds based on calls Singapore NUS College draws 10,000 applications for 400 places, showing strong liberal arts interest Singapore Life After... blazing biomedical research trail in S'pore: Renowned scientist breaks new ground at 59 In December 2024, police arrested a suspected arsonist over a karaoke bar fire in Hanoi that killed 11 people. AFP
The Star
13-05-2025
- Business
- The Star
Vietnam tycoon seeks to manage her assets from prison, media reports
HANOI: Vietnamese property tycoon Truong My Lan sent a letter from her prison cell asking authorities to reevaluate the wealth of her assets, as she seeks to pay back some of the billions embezzled and avoid the death penalty. The 68-year-old petitioned the steering committee responsible for recovering funds tied to her property empire, asking it to reassess the market price of 726 assets that she claims are undervalued, according to news website Thanh Nien. Lan said the company appointed to evaluate her assets, which includes prime real estate locations in central Ho Chi Minh City, had estimated their worth at around 253.5 trillion dong (US$9.7 billion), which she said was well below market value. She also asked officials to consider incorporating a further 440 assets which are currently excluded from assessment. Lan was sentenced to death last April after being found guilty of embezzling $12.3 billion from Saigon Commercial Bank, Vietnam's largest-ever fraud case. She also faces decades behind bars after being found guilty on charges including money laundering in a second trial. Prosecutors had told the former chairwoman of Van Thinh Phat Group she must repay an estimated $11 billion to avoid the death penalty. During court proceedings, her lawyers said she has been working to pay back thousands of bondholders and hundreds of millions in stolen bank funds. The real estate mogul's downfall captured global attention due to the severity of the sentence and the vast sums of money involved. She has become the most high-profile case of the ruling Communist Party's corruption crackdown, which has led to the detention of scores of senior officials and business executives. In her request to authorities, Lan also asked the committee to allow her to be involved in the process of asset valuation and handling, with the goal of getting the greatest financial returns for the State. - Bloomberg
