Nguyen Hoang Nguyen, a former nurse at Nghe An Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital, has been sentenced to 14 years in prison for a fraudulent scheme that defrauded victims of more than 1.2 billion VND. Nguyen, who had previously enjoyed a stable job and family life, fell into financial distress due to unsuccessful stock market investments, leading him to commit fraud.

In October 2023, Nguyen was approached by Nguyen Van T. who was seeking a job for his wife at the hospital. Taking advantage of the family's desperation, Nguyen fabricated a story claiming to be a hospital employee and even asserted that he was a relative of the hospital's director. He promised to secure a job for a fee of 400 million VND.

After negotiations, Nguyen agreed to lower the fee to 380 million VND, but insisted on receiving the full amount upfront, assuring the family that the recruitment process was merely a formality. Trusting his claims, the family handed over the money, believing they were dealing with a legitimate healthcare professional.

Nguyen then failed to deliver on his promises, only assisting with paperwork and providing study materials for the job application. He continued to reassure the family, even claiming to have dined with the hospital director and guaranteeing a 100% success rate for the job application. To further convince them, he returned a small portion of the money, 20 million VND, as a sign of goodwill.

However, when the hospital published the list of successful candidates without Nguyen Van T.'s wife, suspicions arose. Nguyen offered various excuses for the delay in their job placement, but eventually, the family realized they had been scammed and reported him to the authorities.

In addition to the job fraud, Nguyen committed another crime by renting cars and creating fake vehicle registration documents to sell or pawn the vehicles for personal gain, resulting in a total fraud amounting to nearly 900 million VND.

During the trial, Nguyen admitted to his crimes, attributing his actions to overwhelming debt from failed investments. He expressed remorse for his actions, acknowledging that his greed led him to betray the trust of others and damage the reputation of the healthcare sector.

The court found Nguyen guilty of fraud and using forged documents, sentencing him to 13 years for fraud and 1 year for the use of false documents, totaling 14 years in prison. As he left the courtroom, Nguyen faced not only a lengthy prison sentence but also the loss of his career, family happiness, and the trust of those who once believed in him.