Scam Hub Occupying an Entire Hotel Busted in Vietnam: 118 Arrested Including 74 Chinese and 113 Foreigners; Japanese Women Lured From Social Media Romance Into Crypto Investment
This article organizes publicly available information into a single account. Where it describes an arrest or an ongoing investigation, that reflects only one stage of criminal procedure and does not mean guilt has been established (the presumption of innocence applies). We will update this article as new information becomes available, including the outcome of prosecution, non-prosecution, or trial. This article is not intended to unfairly disparage any individual, group, nationality, ethnicity, or belief, and aims to provide objective, fact-based information.
Police in Thanh Hoa province in north-central Vietnam raided a group running international online scams from the Van Hoa hotel in the province's Nghi Son ward on October 17, 2026, arresting 118 people. According to VIETJO Vietnam News, the group had rented the entire hotel for its operations, and 113 of those arrested were foreign nationals: 74 Chinese, 28 Indians, nine Cambodians, one Malaysian and one Myanmar national. Eighteen of the foreign nationals had entered Vietnam illegally, and one was wanted abroad. The alleged ringleader is Zhao Xuefeng, 39, a Chinese national.
On October 21, provincial police announced that 84 people, including the ringleader, had been charged. The allegations involve fraudulently obtaining property using computers, telecommunications networks and electronic devices, as well as arranging and brokering illegal entry, exit and residence. The organization operated in six groups targeting Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, China, India and the United States. For Japanese women, the group reportedly built intimate relationships on social media before soliciting investments in cryptocurrency. It also ran scams disguised as stock and foreign exchange investments, fake job offers and online sports betting. No Japanese nationals were among those arrested.
Current status: The number of victims in Japan and their losses, the flow of the group's funds, and how the 34 people not charged will be handled remain unclear as of this writing. This article will be updated as further details emerge.
On Southeast Asia-based fraud aimed at Japan, bases were also raided in Bangkok, Thailand and Perak, Malaysia in September 2026. Related article
Editorial Perspective
No decision on indictment has been made at this stage, so this article reflects information from the investigative phase. An arrest is only one step in criminal procedure and does not establish guilt (the presumption of innocence). According to National Police Agency and Ministry of Justice statistics, the number of Penal Code cases involving foreign nationals visiting Japan has risen for two consecutive years since 2023, but remains below its mid-2000s peak (related article). A single case does not necessarily reflect the broader statistical trend; further developments are worth watching.