Top Officials Detained Over Kampong Chhnang Land Grabs

Kampong Chhnang Province: A reliable source reported that Brigadier General Sum Socheat, Provincial Police Commissioner of Kampong Chhnang Province and Lieutenant Colonel Keo Narun, Director of the Intervention Office of Kampong Chhnang Provincial Police, were arrested at around 10 am on December 16, 2021, over a case of encroachment on flooded forest land arounmd the Tonle Sap Lake in Kampong Chhnang province.

The source further stated that the residence of the former governor of Kampong Chhnang province, Mr. Chhour Chan Khoeun and/or two locations in Kampong Chhnang province were also besieged by the authorities. Provincial officials have not yet commented on the matter.

The officials accused of destroying the flooded forest, which is state land, and burning it to take ownership. According to preliminary reports, Mr. Chhour Chanthoeun owns more than 2,000 hectares, Mr. Sum Socheat owns nearly 700 hectares, and Keo Narun owns about 400 hectares. All three of them are civil servants with merit, power and illegal money.

The Prime Minister on November 28, 2021, issued a strict order to crack down on and confiscate the flooded forest land in the Tonle Sap area, which the state has designated as Zone 1, Zone 2 and Zone 3, which the state determines to maintain and protect. NKD