Two former Sacombank executives have been arrested and placed in custody for their involvement in a massive bank fraud that caused damages worth nearly US$289 million, police said on Tuesday.

Former Sacombank deputy chairman Tram Be and ex-CEO Phan Huy Khang were put in four-month custody to serve an investigation on charges of “deliberately acting against the state's regulations on economic management, with serious consequences,” according to officers.

Tram Be listens to his arrest warrant in this photo provided by the police.

Sacombank, fully known as Saigon Thuong Tin Commercial Joint Stock Bank, is one of Vietnam’s biggest lenders by assets.

Be, 58, is also a former chairman of Sacombank’s credit council, and Khang, 44, an ex-member of the council.

In February, Be, one of Vietnam’s most well-known banking moguls, and his son Tram Khai Hoa officially had their membership of the board of directors at Sacombank terminated.

On Tuesday night, Be and Khang were taken by police to board a flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi as part of their investigation.

Phan Huy Khang listens to his arrest warrant in this photo provided by the police.

Also on Tuesday, police launched criminal proceedings against 22 other individuals, on charges of “deliberately acting against the state's regulations on economic management, with serious consequences”. An arrest warrant was issued for 14 of these people.

Be, Khang and their accomplices have broken the law at four different banks, resulting in total financial losses of VND6.6 trillion (US$288.4 million), the police said.

The banks in question are the Vietnam Construction Joint Stock Commercial Bank (VNCB), Tien Phong Bank (TPBank), Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) and Sacombank itself.

Financial damage at the VNCB alone is estimated at more than VND9 trillion ($401.79 million), with its ex-chairman Pham Cong Danh sentenced to 30 years behind bars for his role in the case.

Besides Danh, 26 other defendants, including three former VNCB executives also received custodial sentences of up to 22 years in September 2016.

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