A VIETNAMESE real estate tycoon was convicted today of fraudulently obtaining property worth billions of dollars in a case that has been a centrepiece of the government’s crackdown on corruption.

Truong My Lan was already convicted in April by the same Ho Chi Minh City court of fraud amounting to $12.5 billion (£10 billion) — nearly 3 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product — in a separate case and sentenced to death by lethal injection.

The trials were broken into two parts due to the number of allegations against her, and Thursday’s verdict, which carries a maximum penalty of life in prison, adds to Ms Lan’s legal troubles as she awaits the appeal against her death sentence to be heard.

“Standing here today is a price too expensive for me to pay. I consider this my destiny and a career accident,” the VNexpress online newspaper quoted Ms Lan, the chairwoman of property developer Van Thinh Phat, as telling the judges in her closing statement last week.

“For the rest of my life, I will never forget that my actions have affected tens of thousands of families.”

Thirty three others were tried as co-defendants in the case but details on the other verdicts were not immediately available.

Ms Lan’s sentence was expected to be announced later in the day.