A Vietnamese-Australian on the lam for the past 15 years has been apprehended in Can Tho City in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta for working with another foreign suspect to con local residents out of more than US$265,000.

Do Huu Le Hung, an Australian national of Vietnamese origin, was arrested by the Can Tho Department of Police after being accused of scamming and appropriating billions of dong (VND1 billion = US$44,234) from his victims.

According to the case file, Hung colluded with Rafael Vazquez from the United States to conduct the scheme.

Hung introduced himself as the director of a company in Can Tho and a partner of Vazquez, claimed to be a billionaire with over $130 billion in assets.

He then claimed that the American businessman wanted to invest in several projects in various Vietnamese localities and was looking for potential partners in the Southeast Asian country.

In order to build his credibility, Hung invited local leaders to parties at fancy restaurants, later uploading photos of the events to his personal Facebook page.

The con artist then sought potential prey, luring them in with the promise of partnership with the fake billionaire.

Their victims were required to give Hung money to organize conferences for Vazquez and take care of his travel expense and accommodation in Vietnam.

Three victims fell for Hung’s trick, losing a total of VND6 billion ($265,404).

Investigation of local police officers showed that Hung had been wanted by the Ministry of Public Security since 2002 for another case.

Authorities are involved in an ongoing probe.

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