Once Crowned Miss Vietnam In the USA in 2018, Ly Ky Anh now faces a seven-year prison sentence for theft of an 80,000 USD Rolex.
by Joe Fotalattee
On the morning of December 13, the People’s Court of Ho Chi Minh City sentenced La Ky Anh (32 years old) for theft of property. After an hour of trial and deliberation, the People’s Court of Ho Chi Minh City sentenced defendant La Ky Anh to 7 years in prison according to reports from the Vietnamese language site Tuoi Tre.
In court, defendant Ky Anh said that there was a love relationship between the defendant and the victim. Ky Anh said that before being arrested, her agency imported and exported goods from Guangzhou to Vietnam, so she had a stable source of income.
The representative of the People’s Procuracy of Ho Chi Minh City said that the defendant took advantage of the victim, the defendant’s behavior was dangerous, and asked the court to pronounce a sentence of 12-13 years in prison for theft.
“The criminal act, the defendant has nothing to deny, but after being detained for a long time, the defendant is very remorseful and asks the jury to grant the defendant a lenient sentence so that she can rebuild her life”, Defendant Ky Anh testified.
The court considered Ky Anh’s first-time offender status and the fact that the victim received the property back and dismissed the complaint. Therefore, the jury sentenced La Ky Anh to 7 years in prison for the crime of property theft.
According to the indictment, from July 2021, La Ky Anh and Nguyen Minh Tan knew each other and often contacted each other via Facebook. By early August 2021, she often went to Mr. Tan’s house in Vo Thi Sau ward (District 3) and slept in Mr. Tan’s room.
During this time, Mr. Tan showed her a collection of watches in his bedroom and told her the value of each watch, including an $80,000 – $90,000 Rolex Daytona Platinum that Mr. Tan loved.
Ky Anh testified that when she learned the value of a Rolex Daytona Platinum watch, she had the intention to steal it.
Taking advantage of Mr. Tan’s deep sleep, she took a picture of the watch, then sent it to Mr. To Van Toan (living in Ward 3, Phu Nhuan District) and asked Toan to go online to order a fake watch.
On September 15, 2021, Mr. Tan checked the watch box and discovered that the Rolex Daytona Platinum watch had been swapped with a fake watch, so he went to the Vo Thi Sau ward police station to report the crime. On September 21, 2021, the Investigation Police Agency of District 3 police seized Mr. Tan’s Rolex Daytona Platinum watch at Mr. Pham Huy Phuong’s house.
According to the asset valuation conclusion of the Property Valuation Council in criminal proceedings, District 3 People’s Committee, the Rolex Daytona Platinum watch was estimated at a value of 1.99 billion VND. On September 23, 2021, the Ho Chi Minh City Police Investigation Police Agency arrested and detained La Ky Anh based on the testimony of Mr. Pham Huy Phuong, Do Trong Hoai, and To Van Toan.
