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San Jose Man Accused In Vietnamese Travel Scheme Arrested

SAN JOSE (CBS SF) -- A San Jose travel agency owner has been arrested on suspicion of scamming several members of the Vietnamese community, police said Friday.

Tony Trung Thai, a 38-year-old San Jose resident, turned himself in to police on Thursday afternoon.

He is the owner of Asia Travel & Tours travel agency at 1816 Tully Road, which has since closed its doors for business, police said.

On June 29, numerous members of the Vietnamese community called police and reported that Thai had defrauded them from 2010 to 2011.

They alleged that he had promised them he would purchase airfare and make travel arrangements in exchange for their money, but he kept the money and did not render the services, police said.

Some of the victims realized they had been duped last month after arriving at the airport and discovering that Thai had not purchased airline tickets or made other travel arrangements for which they had paid, police said.

Thai was booked into Santa Clara County Jail on $2 million bail.

Police believe there may additional victims who purchased travel services months in advance and paid Thai for the services last year.

Victims may file a report at the San Jose Police Department, located at 201 W. Mission St., San Jose.

They are asked to reference case No. 11-184-9514 and provide as much documentation or transaction receipts as possible.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Hau Ngo at (408) 277-4521. Those wishing to remain anonymous can call the Silicon Valley Crime Stoppers at (408) 947-STOP (7867) or visit their website at www.svcrimestoppers.org.

(Copyright 2011 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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