Cambodia's new anti-corruption unit makes first arrests

Cambodia ranked the second most corrupt southeast Asian nation in an annual poll

PHNOM PENH (AFP)— Cambodia's new anti-corruption unit announced its first arrests Wednesday as one of the world's most corrupt nations tries to prove it is serious about fighting rampant graft.

Top Chan Sereivuth, a prosecutor at a court in western Pursat province, was arrested along with his two bodyguards on Monday, said the chief of the country's anti-corruption unit.

"He (the prosecutor) was charged with corruption, the illegal detention of people and extortion," Om Yentieng told reporters in the capital. "He abused his power," he added.

The bodyguards face charges of illegal detention and extortion.

The three suspects allegedly detained two men and extorted thousands of dollars from them in an incident in June, said Om Yentieng, who is also a top adviser to Prime Minister Hun Sen.

Authorities are still hunting for a fourth suspect, the prosecutor's brother-in-law who is believed to play key role in the case, he added.

Cambodia was ranked 154th worst out of 178 countries on anti-graft organisation Transparency International's most recent corruption perception index.

It was also ranked the second most corrupt southeast Asian nation after Indonesia in an annual poll by the Political and Economic Risk Consultancy earlier this year.

The arrests mark the start of the first high-profile case for the anti-graft body established earlier this year.

Om Yentieng said 42 corruption complaints had been filed so far and some investigations were still ongoing.

"More arrests will happen if we have evidence," he said.

In March, the Cambodian parliament approved a long-awaited anti-corruption law that could see officials jailed for up to 15 years if convicted of accepting bribes.

The law allowed for the creation of the anti-corruption council and an anti-corruption unit to oversee investigations.

The council recently adopted a five-year plan to tackle graft that will include mandatory asset declarations for more than 100,000 state officials.

Critics said it was unlikely either body would be effective because both would be controlled by the ruling party.