Cambodia arrests more than 1,000 people, cracks down on online scams

Phnom Penh [Cambodia], July 17: Cambodia has launched a nationwide crackdown on online scams, after Prime Minister Hun Manet threatened to transfer or sack local officials if they failed to crack down on the crime.
Cambodian police said on July 16 that they had arrested more than 1,000 people while raiding online fraud centers , as Prime Minister Hun Manet ordered a crackdown on cybercrime.
Prime Minister Hun Manet issued a directive on June 15 ordering law enforcement and the military to "prevent and eradicate online fraud," warning that they could lose their jobs if they fail to ensure effective enforcement, according to the Khmer Times .
Within three days, authorities carried out raids across the country, including the capital Phnom Penh, the city of Poipet near the Thai border and the coastal city of Sihanoukville.
AFP cited a police report released on the evening of July 16 saying that more than 1,000 suspects, most of them foreigners, had been arrested. Many people rescued from the scam centers said they had been trafficked or lured there under false promises.
Under Prime Minister Hun Manet's directive, provincial governors, police chiefs and key officials could be transferred or fired if they fail to take decisive action to stop online fraud in their areas.
"Failure to perform or cooperate in any way shall be grounds for reconsideration of appointment, transfer or removal," the directive said.
The tough language reflects a growing urgency to clamp down on what officials describe as a threat to national security, as Cambodia comes under growing international pressure over online scams, the Khmer Times reported .
Many of the scam centers are based in casinos or isolated complexes suspected of being linked to human trafficking and cybercrime.
The Ministry of Interior, through the National Police and the General Department of Immigration, has been instructed to deport foreigners who enter or reside illegally in Cambodia. In addition, border and maritime security forces have been put on alert to prevent illegal border crossings.
In another development, Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Neth Savoeun expressed concern about the increase in drug production, smuggling and abuse in the world and the region, while drug crimes in Cambodia have not decreased.
Neth Savoeun, who is also the chairman of the National Drug Control Agency ( NACD), said that some entertainment clubs, condominiums, hotels, motels, karaoke bars and slums are recording drug use.
According to a report by NACD, authorities have cracked down on 5,182 drug cases, arrested 13,452 suspects and seized 1,890 kg of drugs and 19 kg of chemicals used to produce drugs in the past six months.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper