The Price of Guilt: Vietnam's Jailed Tycoon's Luxury Excesses on Full Display A recent government auction in Vietnam saw two Hermès Birkin bags sold for a staggering $535,000.
Confiscated from jailed tycoon Truong My Lan, who is serving a life sentence for embezzling billions from a major Vietnamese bank, the bags fetched nearly seven times their starting bid.
The sale of these luxury items highlights the vast inequalities within Vietnam's society. Truong My Lan had attempted to justify keeping the bags as "keepsakes" for her family, but the court was skeptical.