Vietnam busts porn live-stream ring foreign-run websites, $163mn in transactions

The ring had operated in Lao Cai and numerous other provinces and cities across Vietnam since 2025, the provincial Department of Public Security said on Thursday.

Four members of the ring have been charged with disseminating depraved cultural products under Article 326 of the Vietnamese Penal Code, the department said.

They are Ly Lo May, 23, and Lo Ta May, 28, both residents of Ta Van Commune in Lao Cai Province, and Pham Van Trong, 37, and Nguyen Thi Ngoc Yen, 38, both from Ninh Binh Province.

According to the investigation, the suspects created accounts on pornographic websites operated overseas before using social media platforms, including Telegram, Zalo, and Facebook, to recruit women into performing pornographic live streams.

They targeted women facing difficult circumstances and lacking stable employment, persuading them to take part in such performances in exchange for payment.

Viewers had to purchase tokens by depositing money through bank accounts or prepaid phone cards to watch the live streams and make requests to the performers.

The money deposited by viewers was transferred through multiple bank accounts and e-wallets before being converted into the cryptocurrency USDT and used to pay the live-stream performers, police said.

Investigators determined that the total value of transactions through accounts linked to the network exceeded VND4.189 trillion ($163 million).

Of the four suspects, Ly Lo May and Lo Ta May directly performed in pornographic live streams, while Trong and Yen managed and operated the network and paid the performers, according to the police department.

The investigation agency has so far recovered VND1.65 billion ($64,200) in illicit proceeds from the suspects.

The case remains under investigation as police work to identify other people involved and handle them in accordance with the law.