Vietnam arrests former international beauty queen over alleged customer deception
Nguyen Thuc Thuy Tien rose to fame after winning Miss Grand International 2021 in Thailand. - Instagram
HCM CITY: Nguyen Thuc Thuy Tien, 26, former Miss Grand International 2021, was arrested on Monday (May 19) by the Ministry of Public Security's Police Investigation Agency over allegations of consumer deception linked to the controversial 'Kera vegetable candy' scandal.
Tien is being investigated for 'deceiving customers' under Clause 2, Article 198 of Vietnam's Penal Code.
The case involves several high-profile individuals, including social media influencers and senior executives from Asia Life Corporation and Che Em Rot Company, who are accused of producing and falsely advertising substandard health food products.
Investigators allege that Tien held a 30 per cent stake in the venture that manufactured Kera candy, a product marketed as a healthy substitute for green vegetables. The remaining 70 per cent was owned by her business partners, Nguyen Thi Thai Hang (known as Hang Du Muc) and Pham Quang Linh (known as Quang Linh Vlogs), both of whom were arrested in early April on similar charges.
Nguyen Thuc Thuy Tien (second from left), seen alongside other suspects arrested by the Ministry of Public Security's Police Investigation Agency. - Courtesy of the Ministry of Public Security
Authorities accuse the company of using deceptive marketing claims — such as 'one piece equals a plate of vegetables' — while failing to disclose key ingredients, including sorbitol, which constituted 35 per cent of the product and caused a laxative effect.
The raw materials used were also found to be of lower nutritional value than advertised, with actual vegetable powder content under 1 per cent despite packaging that claimed 28 per cent.
The misleading promotional campaign was widely disseminated across social media platforms. Tien, who has more than 2.6 million followers on Facebook, appeared in livestreams and posts promoting the candy as safe and beneficial for both children and adults. She later deleted these posts after users raised concerns about the accuracy of the claims.
According to police, over 135,000 units of the product were sold to more than 30,000 customers, generating revenues exceeding VND17 billion (approximately US$670,000).
Several executives from Asia Life Corporation have also been indicted for 'producing counterfeit food,' including Truong Thi Le and Tran Thi Le Thu, who are currently in custody. Others, such as Pham Thi Diem Trinh and Nguyen Pham Hong Vy, have been released due to pregnancy or child-rearing responsibilities.
In April, Tien was fined VNĐ25 million (US$1,000) for failing to disclose sponsorship and advertisement obligations in her online promotions of the product.
Nguyen Thuc Thuy Tien rose to fame after winning Miss Grand International 2021 in Thailand and was previously recognised by the Ho Chí Minh Communist Youth Union as one of Vietnam's outstanding young figures in the arts.
Beyond pageantry, she has appeared in several music videos and films, including the upcoming movie Chot Don alongside actor Quyen Linh.
Her arrest has shocked fans and drawn widespread media attention, underscoring growing public concern over false health claims and celebrity endorsements in Vietnam's rapidly expanding, social media-driven e-commerce market. — Vietnam News/ANN
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Express
3 hours ago
- Daily Express
Sabah pushes for fairer punishments: Proposed changes to criminal laws
Published on: Wednesday, June 11, 2025 Published on: Wed, Jun 11, 2025 By: Sherell Jeffrey Text Size: Those from the CLRC posing in a photo with Sabah stakeholders. Kota Kinabalu: Legal experts and civil society representatives in Sabah are pushing for fairer punishments and real action on proposed changes to Malaysia's criminal laws, as the country undertakes its biggest review of crime-related legislation in decades. These suggestions were expressed during a townhall session here, Monday, hosted by the Criminal Law Reform Committee (CLRC) as part of its nationwide consultation tour which kicked off in the peninsula on May 21. Advertisement Chaired by former Federal Court Judge Tan Sri Harmindar Singh Dhaliwal, the townhall here aimed to gather input from Sabah stakeholders on proposed reforms to three important pieces of legislation, namely the Penal Code (Act 574), Criminal Procedure Code (Act 593) and Evidence Act (Act 56). 'We have not finalised anything. For now, we are just seeking feedback from everyone,' Harmindar told the townhall session. 'From then on, the committee, the researchers and so on will look into all the proposals and see which ones we can implement immediately and those that we can implement maybe in the longer term,' he said, pointing out that the committee remains in the consultation phase. The consultation process includes townhall sessions across Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and upcoming sessions in Sarawak, including online feedback forms. The public consultation period has been extended from May 31 to June 15 to accommodate wider participation. Among those present at the townhall session here were Sabah Law Society Immediate Past President Datuk Roger Chin who pointed out the importance of inclusive consultation in the law-making process. 'A lot of these laws, a lot of times if they do not consult stakeholders, they do not take into account their views, then the laws will be not good,' Roger told Daily Express when met after the session. 'This is the only way that we can advance law because law cannot be static. It must be amended all the time to suit the changing times,' he said. The reform initiative, spearheaded by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said, reflects the Government's commitment to ensuring Malaysia's legal framework remains relevant and effective in addressing modern challenges. While Sabah stakeholders welcomed the consultation process, several expressed cautious optimism about whether their feedback would translate into actual legislative changes. 'I hope the feedbacks are actually incorporated. I think a lot of times, for whatever policy reasons or reasons unknown, even worse, laws are not changed when they should be,' Roger said, citing concerns about prison overcrowding due to inflexible sentencing for minor drug offenses. Social activist cum former journalist Dr Kanul Gindol shared this sentiment while expressing confidence in the committee's leadership. 'I hope the Government will really look into all these loopholes, grievances and comments from the stakeholders, especially from our learned lawyers who are very involved in carrying out fair involvement or solutions of any cases involving criminal laws,' he said. Justice for Sisters representative Megan Stephen pointed out the need for gender-neutral language in criminal laws. 'In all the provision or law, amendment should be done to make it a more gender-neutral language. For example, rape cases. The word 'woman' should be changed to 'person' because anyone can be raped, not just women,' said Megan. 'What I hope as well is to protect stateless and undocumented people, not just for Malaysians, but underprivileged people as well. 'I have a 50-50 confidence level due to concerns about double standards in the justice system where if you have more privilege, more money, then certain people that are underprivileged, they cannot be protected,' said Megan, expressing measured expectations about its implementation. Sabah Prisons' Board of Visiting Justices Chairperson Datuk Katherine Lee advocates for Community Service Orders (CSO) as alternatives to imprisonment for lesser crimes. 'I would like to see more CSO implemented, especially for the lesser crimes,' she said, expressing concern over the current system where mothers who steal milk or food for their baby are sentenced to three months jail or six months' jail. 'It does not make sense to me. Nobody's looking after the babies,' she said. She also expressed concerns about the Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA), saying that wealthy defendants should not be able to simply negotiate settlements for crimes. Instead, she proposed that offenders still be charged properly, but they can add on to the sentence to contribute to society as a contribution to help the needy. She would also like to see Restorative Justice (RJ) which focuses on repairing harm caused by crime involving the victims and offenders and even families in the resolution process. 'This approach addresses the harm caused by crime rather than solely focusing on punishment, potentially facilitating reconciliation between all parties involved. 'The implementation would require comprehensive training for stakeholders including police officers, social workers and judges, as well as legislative amendments to the Child Act 2001, Penal Code and Criminal Procedure Code to formally recognise and support RJ practices,' she said. For the record, this is Malaysia's first comprehensive attempt at criminal law reform through a dedicated committee structure. The CLRC, supported by an Ad Hoc Committee comprising experts in law, enforcement, technology and civil society, has been tasked with completing its review within 18 months in phases. The reform initiative reflects the Madani Government's commitment to ensuring Malaysia's criminal justice system becomes more responsive, fair and effective while maintaining the rule of law and protecting individual rights. The success of these reforms will largely depend on how effectively the Government incorporates the diverse voices and concerns raised during these consultation sessions into concrete legislative action. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
Malaysiakini
4 hours ago
- Malaysiakini
Teoh's family slams ex-boss' silence on NFA decision
The family of Teoh Beng Hock has condemned former Selangor executive councillor Ean Yong Hian Wah for his continued silence over the Attorney-General's Chambers'(AGC) decision to classify Beng Hock's case as no further action. In a scathing Facebook post, Beng Hock's sister Teoh Lee Lan expressed deep frustration that Ean Yong (above) - her brother's superior at the time of his death - has yet to speak up or take a clear stand, even 21 days after the AGC's NFA decision was made public. "Sixteen years on, and you remain...
The Sun
7 hours ago
- The Sun
School to prepare full report on teacher's offensive remarks over UPSI students' deaths
IPOH: The Perak Education Department has instructed a school to prepare a full report concerning one of its teachers, who allegedly posted offensive remarks on social media about the recent tragic accident which claimed the lives of 15 Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI) students, on the East-West Highway (JRTB). State Education, Higher Education, Youth and Sports Committee chairman Khairudin Abu Hanipah said that a full report would be prepared by the principal of the secondary school involved, in accordance with the circulars issued by the Ministry of Education (MOE). He said that initial investigations confirmed that the Facebook account responsible for the insensitive post belonged to a teacher at the school. 'As an educator, I deeply regret the actions of this individual, who made inappropriate remarks regarding the tragic incident involving the UPSI students,' he said. He added that following the viral post, the District Education Office (PPD) immediately contacted the school principal, while the PPD counsellor reached out to the teacher to remove the content. 'A check conducted at 8.10 pm yesterday confirmed that the post had been deleted,' he told Bernama when contacted, today.
