Summary
Vietnam’s High People’s Court upheld the death sentence for real estate tycoon Truong My Lan, convicted of embezzlement and bribery in a record $12 billion fraud case.
Lan can avoid execution by returning $9 billion (three-quarters of the stolen funds), potentially reducing her sentence to life imprisonment.
Her crimes caused widespread economic harm, including a bank run and $24 billion in government intervention to stabilize the financial system.
Lan has admitted guilt but prosecutors deemed her actions unprecedentedly damaging. She retains limited legal recourse through retrial procedures.
Do you mean the deal to avoid the death penalty in favor of life imprisonment, or a reduced sentence for returning the stolen goods?
If it is the former, I kinda doubt that a normal thief is looking at the death penalty. If it is the latter, I wouldn’t see a reason that they wouldn’t. Even in the capital of cruel and unusual punishments, Saudi Arabia, followed closely by the US, they don’t deny a lesser sentence when restitution is an option.