Ngan 98 and KOL livestream team closing deals worth hundreds of billions of dong get into trouble with the law

(Dan Tri) - A series of celebrities and KOLs who livestreamed to close deals worth hundreds of billions of dong such as Ngan 98, Hoang Huong, Hang Du Muc were prosecuted and detained for trading in counterfeit goods, tax evasion, deceiving consumers...

From livestreams that "close deals" worth hundreds of billions of dong and attract hundreds of thousands of views, many celebrities and KOLs (Knowledgeable Persons of Influence) who were once considered successful models in online business are now entangled in legal trouble.

Authorities have continuously prosecuted and temporarily detained many cases for trading in counterfeit and poor quality goods, tax evasion, and false advertising causing damage to consumers.

Ngan 98: From "livestream hotgirl" to prison

Ngan 98, real name Vo Thi Ngoc Ngan, known as a famous "hotgirl" on social networks, has just been prosecuted and temporarily detained for the act of producing and trading in counterfeit food products.

According to the investigation agency, Ngan 98 is said to be the operator of ZuBu Trading and Service Company Limited and the business household ZuBu Shop, distributing many weight loss products such as X1000, X3 Super Detox, X7 Plus... Ngan 98 signed a processing contract with the above food production companies and the same type of Collagen vegetable pills.

When the first factory was discovered to be using banned substances, Ngan 98 switched to Nanotesla Company to continue production, but the two units were actually the same system. Products in packages without a circulation license were still sold by Ngan 98 widely on social networking sites.

Ngan 98 and seized evidence (Photo: Provided by Police).

All payments are transferred to personal accounts or relatives, then collected to Ngan 98's account. From 2023 to July 2024, she earned about 120 billion VND from this illegal business.

Notably, the appraisal results of the Institute of Criminal Science - Ministry of Public Security showed that the series of collagen pills named Ngan 98 were not only of poor quality but also contained two banned active ingredients, sibutramine and phenolphthalein - substances that have been eliminated globally because of the risk of causing stroke, cardiovascular disorders and cancer.

Hoang Huong: "Livestream boss" hides revenue of thousands of billions of dong

Hoang Huong, real name Hoang Thi Huong - is a familiar name in the online business world, once known as the "queen of closing deals" with an empire of functional foods, cosmetics... with livestream sales sessions attracting hundreds of thousands of views per session.

The products that Hoang Huong sells mainly target middle-aged and elderly customers, especially women, with high prices. During livestreams, she often offers big promotions, giving away cars, motorbikes, gold... to stimulate demand, making many loyal customers buy products regularly.

However, Hoang Huong has also been accused of exaggerating its effects many times, such as claiming that her mouthwash can "cure bad breath from previous lives" or that her bone and joint medicine "cures all diseases from head to toe".

In particular, the businesswoman also builds her image through charity activities in Nghe An, Quang Binh, Ha Giang , to create prestige and trust from customers.

Hoang Huong regularly livestreamed to sell products on many social media platforms before being prosecuted and temporarily detained (Photo: Screenshot).

However, the image of this businesswoman collapsed when in early October, the Ministry of Public Security's Investigation Police Department initiated a case and prosecuted 6 defendants for violating accounting regulations causing serious consequences, including Hoang Huong.

According to the investigation agency, Hoang Huong made money by building an ecosystem of 18 companies, 25 business households and 44 individuals to sell functional foods and health protection products. At the same time, he directed employees to legalize revenue through households and individuals to evade taxes.

Notably, Hoang Huong left nearly 1,800 billion VND in revenue off the books and incorrectly declared value added tax with revenue of nearly 2,100 billion VND over the past nearly 4 years.

Quang Linh Vlogs - Hang Du Muc: Selling fake goods, deceiving consumers

Quang Linh Vlogs (Pham Quang Linh) and Hang Du Muc (Nguyen Thi Thai Hang) and the "sisters" couple were once loved by the community thanks to their inspirational videos with positive energy.

After collaborating on several livestream sales sessions, Quang Linh Vlogs and Hang Du Muc co-founded Chi Em Rot Group Joint Stock Company (CER Group). Quang Linh holds more than 13% of the shares, while Hang Du Muc holds 25%.

However, when switching to online business, they took advantage of their personal influence to advertise and sell fake products, deceiving consumers. Specifically, Chi Em Rot Company cooperated with Asia Life Company (Dak Lak) to produce "SuperGreens Gummies" candy (Kera candy), advertised as containing 10 types of fresh vegetables and "helping to stay healthy and beautiful from fiber".

Carrot garden rented for filming promotional video (Photo: Kera).

However, the actual fiber content was only 0.935%. The group of defendants knew clearly about the violations but still made videos and livestreamed fake raw material areas to deceive consumers. In just over a month, they sold 129,000 boxes, earning more than 17.5 billion VND.

During the investigation, the Ministry of Public Security appraised the seized evidence, which was Kera candy. The conclusion showed that in 100 grams of candy, there was only 1.01 grams of fiber. According to the indictment, out of 17.5 billion VND in revenue, the defendants illegally profited more than 12.4 billion VND. This action caused both of them to be entangled in the law, ending their once-admired image.

Thuy Tien - from international beauty queen to Kera vegetable candy scandal

In the "Kera vegetable candy" case, Miss Thuy Tien's role was determined to be not only as an advertiser, but also as one of the 7 founding shareholders of the Sisters of the Basket Company, and at the same time as the representative face that helped the product quickly attract attention.

According to authorities, Miss Thuy Tien is said to have contributed 25% of shares, along with Quang Linh Vlogs group, Hang Du Muc and associates to discuss ideas, product designs and directly participate in livestream sales.

When she saw that the product was selling well, Thuy Tien even offered to increase her profit margin to 30-35%. However, the investigation agency said that during the production and business process, Thuy Tien and the group of shareholders did not monitor the quality, allowing the product to be advertised falsely.

Miss Thuy Tien in a meeting about Kera vegetable candy products (Photo: Kera).

The investigation agency accused Thuy Tien of repeatedly providing false information such as: Candy made from 10 types of VietGap vegetables, no sugar, "one pill equals a bunch of vegetables", fiber added thanks to freeze-drying technology... In reality, the fiber content in the candy is only 0.935%.

At the end of February, when the controversy broke out online, she asked to sign a fake service contract to avoid responsibility as a shareholder. Recently, the Supreme People's Procuracy prosecuted Miss Nguyen Thuc Thuy Tien, Quang Linh Vlogs, Hang Du Muc and 2 others in the case related to Kera vegetable candy.

"Hai Sen Family": From internet idol to prison for selling counterfeit goods

The TikTok channel “Gia Dinh Hai Sen” with more than 2.6 million followers was founded by Le Van Hai and his wife in Ninh Binh, famous for humorous videos about family life. However, when they became famous, Hai Sen and his wife began to venture into the cosmetics and functional food business, taking advantage of their personal influence to promote and sell products online.

Business products include cosmetics and functional foods with personal brands such as deodorant spray, hair removal cream, appetite syrup, female ginseng..., each product costs from 100,000 to 400,000 VND.

By June, this TikToker was involved in a scandal over suspicions of selling poor quality products. Many people discovered that all products on this TikTok channel had been hidden from their shopping carts. Many customers who had purchased the products left comments asking for an explanation from the account owner, but this TikToker remained silent.

Owner of TikTok channel "Gia Dinh Hai Sen" livestreams selling underarm deodorant products (Photo: Screenshot).

By mid-June, the directors of Hai Be Company Ltd., Tran Dai Phuc and Le Van Hai, were temporarily detained to investigate the act of trading cosmetics with signs of violating the law.

The police agency investigated and clarified that from 2024 to present, Hai Be Company Limited has sold more than 800,000 products through social networking channels TikTok Shop, Facebook, Shopee "Gia Dinh Hai Sen", "Hai Sen"; of which "Hai Be Delicious Syrup" alone sold over 100,000 product boxes.

The results of the appraisal of the quality indicators of "Hai Be Delicious Syrup", the substances including Vitamin A, Calcium, Vitamin C (the main substances that create the product's effects) only reached less than 70% compared to the announcement. According to the provisions of Decree 98/2020 of the Government, the health protection food "Hai Be Delicious Syrup" is a fake product.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/kinh-doanh/ngan-98-va-dan-kol-livestream-chot-don-tram-nghin-ty-dong-vuong-lao-ly-20251014000726501.htm