Company Cleared, Two Employees Still Accused
Phu Nhuan Jewelry JSC, known as PNJ, finally caught a break.
Police in Thanh Hoa reviewed its diamond imports and said the paperwork checked out, with sales that were tightly watched and followed the rules.
That clears the company in the preliminary findings of a cross-border smuggling probe. It does not clear everyone.
Police say the two teamed up with Indian nationals to move diamonds from Hong Kong into Vietnam, keeping the profits for themselves.
The two are Dang Ngoc Thao, former head of PNJ Laboratory Co., and Tran Tien Nhu Nghi, a P-Lab employee.
The probe became public in early July, and the stock has been under pressure ever since.
What Police Say the Two Employees Did
The accusations against Thao are specific.
Police said, "He bought illegal stones and erased the tiny serial numbers etched into them."
Then he added P-Lab identification codes, issued new certificates, and sold the stones for profit, police say.
Those markings are like a fingerprint for a diamond. Wiping them off makes a stone much harder to trace, and the new certificates gave the stones a fresh paper trail.
The scheme, as police describe it, had a clear pattern: bring stones in from Hong Kong, wipe away their old markings, and sell them as if they were new.
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The money from those sales, police say, went to Thao, and the smuggled diamonds never entered PNJ's retail system.
Since the investigation surfaced in early July, the share price has remained under strain.
Police put the operation at more than 30,000 stones over two years.
The combined value was over 1.5 trillion dong, or about $57 million.
The police statement did not say whether the two employees denied the accusations, and they could not be reached for comment.
Police say the investigation is still ongoing and expanding to review people connected to the case. That means more details could surface in the coming weeks.
A Scandal That Shook the Diamond Market
The case did more than dent one stock.
Dozens of diamond shops closed temporarily, buyers asked for refunds, and some diamonds were resold at steep discounts as confidence in the diamond market took a hit.
The fear spread beyond PNJ, and the whole diamond market felt the squeeze as customers pulled back.
PNJ shares felt the pain too, with the stock down around 37% since the investigation became public in early July.
Friday brought a sharp turn.
The move came at 11:24 a.m. in Hanoi, heading for their best close in a month.
The scandal also stirred calls for stricter industry rules.
The trade ministry will run a monthlong inspection in August of markets for gemstones and precious metals, focusing on where the goods come from and how they are labeled.
What This Means for Your Portfolio
The bottom line: the company is cleared for now, but the word "preliminary" matters.
For investors, the real question is whether trust comes back.
A stock that fell around 37% can bounce hard on good news, as Friday showed.
But one strong day does not erase the worry that spread through the diamond market.
The August inspection could bring more changes, and the probe could still turn up new details.
For anyone watching PNJ or the diamond trade, this feels like the end of one chapter, not the whole story.
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