A Change of Guard

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Saturday 14 May 2011

Cambodia’s Anti-Graft Unit Succeeds In First Case



By Samuel Rubenfeld
The Wall Street Journal

A Cambodian former prosecutor was sentenced to 19 years in prison in what was the first case tried by the country’s new anti-graft agency, AFP reported.

Top Chan Sereivuth was convicted of corruption, illegal detention and extortion, Pong Chan Soyutheara, the prosecutor at Pursat court in western Cambodia, told AFP. His bodyguards were sentenced to 15 years and 16 years in jail,respectively, the prosecutor said.

They were arrested in November for allegedly detaining two men and extorting thousands of dollars from them during an incident in June.

The case was being closely watched by observers gauging Cambodia’s commitment to fighting corruption; the country is near the bottom of Transparency International’s 2010 Corruption Perception Index ratings.

Cambodia ranked 154th in the survey of surveys, tied with countries such as Russia, Tajikistan and Papua New Guinea.
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Heavy penalties in Cambodia's 1st anti-graft case
The Straits Times

PHNOM PENH (Cambodia) - A CAMBODIAN former prosecutor was sentenced to 19 years in prison for corruption on Thursday, officials said, in the first case brought by the country's new anti-graft unit.

Top Chan Sereivuth was convicted of corruption, illegal detention and extortion, Pong Chan Soyutheara, the prosecutor at Pursat court in western Cambodia, told AFP.

Sereivuth's two bodyguards were sentenced to 15 and 16 years in jail for illegal detention and extortion, he said, as one of the world's most corrupt nations tries to prove it is serious about fighting graft.

The trio were arrested in November after allegedly detaining two men and extorting thousands of dollars from them in an incident last June, the head of the anti-graft unit, Om Yentieng, said at the time.

A fourth suspect, the ex-prosecutor's brother-in-law, remains at large and was sentenced to 18 years in jail in absentia. All four were also ordered to pay around US$1,000 (S$1,241) in compensation to the victims, the prosecutor added.

The high-profile case was closely watched by observers to gauge Cambodia's commitment to tackling corruption. Activist Chan Soveth of local rights group Adhoc said the conviction was 'acceptable' and would serve as a warning to corrupt officials. -- AFP

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