Police in Tang Nhon Phu ward, Ho Chi Minh city, Vietnam have taken action against a 20-year-old woman for filing a false report.
Earlier, the woman told police that a man on a motorcycle had approached her and stolen her iPhone 14 Pro while she was walking along Phan Chu Trinh street.
After receiving the report, officers launched an investigation. They later determined that no robbery had taken place.
During questioning, the woman admitted that she had sold the phone to a mobile phone shop for more than VND 10 million.
After selling the device, she made up the robbery story. Her goal was to ask her family for money to cover the installment payments on a laptop she had purchased.
Believing her account, her family urged her to report the alleged robbery to the police.
This was not an isolated case. A few days earlier, authorities had also handled another person who filed a false police report using a similar scheme.
Police said that false reports waste public resources and consume the time of law enforcement officers.
Such actions also disrupt crime prevention efforts and may delay the response to genuine emergencies.
Under current regulations, anyone who intentionally provides false information or files a false report with the authorities may face an administrative fine ranging from VND 3 million to VND 4 million.
Vietnam detective agency https://vietnamdetective.org
