Police in Da Nang have broken up a cross-border romance scam ring that ran out of a rented villa in a quiet residential neighbourhood, and the details show just how organised these operations have become.
The raid happened in late October at a property in the Regal Victoria residential area in Dien Ban Dong Ward, just outside the city centre. Inside, officers found 13 foreign nationals — two Chinese and 11 Indonesians — working 87 smartphones and 12 desktop computers in shifts. The ring was led by Xiong Zhouhua, a 33-year-old Chinese national, with a 25-year-old Indonesian, Aditya Aldi Pratama, managing the day-to-day work of ten compatriots split across five teams.
The playbook was classic pig-butchering style fraud. Xiong sourced scam scripts over Telegram, then handed operatives phone numbers and WhatsApp accounts. Each worker contacted roughly 50 prospective Indonesian victims a day, posing as attractive women to build romantic trust. Once a target was hooked, they were steered to a fake shopping site promising commissions for completed orders. Small withdrawals were allowed at first to build confidence; once deposits grew, accounts were locked and extra 'processing fees' demanded before the whole balance was taken. Stolen rupiah was funnelled through two private Telegram groups, converted into USDT cryptocurrency by automated tools, minus a 3% cut, and swept into the boss's wallet.
The economics of the operation were striking. Workers earned a $700 monthly salary plus a $200 attendance bonus, with penalties of $400 to $1,000 for missing targets and team bonuses of 5–13% when revenue hit $10,000. Xiong reportedly arrived in Vietnam in late August, leased the villa in September, and spent about $60,000 on network equipment and electronics. He then recruited the Indonesian workers, confiscated their passports and kept them confined to the property, hiring a cook so no one needed to leave. Prosecutors say the investigation is ongoing.
The bust is part of a wider national crackdown. In late October, police in Thanh Hoa province dismantled a far larger ring involving 113 foreign nationals targeting victims in multiple countries; by November 4, 94 suspects had been detained and around 50 billion VND in stolen funds traced. At a government briefing, Major General Nguyen Quoc Toan said Vietnam welcomes foreign visitors and protects their rights, but will not tolerate anyone using Vietnamese territory for transnational cybercrime.
For travellers, the takeaway is straightforward rather than alarming. Da Nang remains one of Vietnam's most popular beach destinations, and raids like this are a sign authorities are acting quickly. But the scam methods described — romance-baiting, fake shopping platforms, crypto payment demands — target people online, not tourists in the street. If someone you meet online pressures you toward an investment or shopping site that pays 'commissions', that's the red flag. As a visitor, the usual advice applies: keep your passport secure, use reputable accommodation, and be wary of too-good-to-be-true offers whether you encounter them in Vietnam or at home.
