Customs officials at Da Nang’s Tien Sa port are holding five Lexus cars registered as assets of repatriating overseas Vietnamese citizens over suspected tax evasion.

Nguyen Quang Lang, customs chief at the port, said the receiver of the five Lexus cars has been identified as Phuong Nam company, based in Tan Binh district, Ho Chi Minh City, but the company refused to receive the vehicles, saying that the cars were sent to the wrong address.

Lang added that Vietnam’s Ministry of Public Security and the General Department of Vietnam Customs have ordered a halt of the re-export of these luxury cars, including three Lexus LX 570s, one Lexus GX 460F, and one Lexus RX 350, which are worth billions of dong on the current market.

Besides the Lexus cars, 16 other cars also registered as assets of repatriating Viet Kieu, including luxury products like a Mercedes-Benz S600, BMW 5 Series, and Mercedes-Benz GL 550 are under investigation.

Under current laws, cars under the names of repatriating Viet Kieu, who move back to Vietnam permanently, are exempted from import and value-added taxes.