PP police officer suspended after pocketing traffic bribe

PHNOM Pen h Mun icipa l Pol ice ch ief Sa r T het ha s suspended Meanchey dist r ict police of f icer Lieutenant Sim Bunthoeun, who on Tuesday “fined” a motorcyclist wit hout issuing him a receipt af ter a v ideo clip of the incident was posted on socia l media.

T het s i g ne d t he l e t t e r order i ng t he s u s pen sion of t he pol ic e of f ic er on Tuesday.

It s a id t hat Bu nt hoeu n had been suspended f rom h i s p o s t a s Me a n c h e y dist r ict police defence a nd i nter vent ion deput y ch ief f or i nc or r e c t l y f i n i n g a member of t he public wit hout i ssu i ng a receipt nea r St u ng Mea nc he y ma r ket i n t he c apit a l’s Mea nchey dist r ict.

“He is to appear in front of t he staf f of f ice during worki n g hou r s i n o r de r t o ack nowledge h i s mist a ke and wait for a renewed decision,” t he letter said.

T het t old T he Post on Wednesday t hat t he off icia l had been tempora r i ly suspended, pending a ny new deci sion a l low i ng h i m to cor rect his mista ke i n t he f uture.

Police of f icers stationed at ot her locations will be subject to t he same penalties if they are found to have committed illega l acts or broken t he reg ulations of t he senior leadership, Thet said.

“Fi r st a nd foremost, we have to fol low t he cor rect procedures.

“The police have init ia l ly suspended him and he will

continue to be monitored. If he makes more serious mistakes, then he will be punished more harshly or demoted.

“We are warning all police officers stationed at various posts to always abide by the law,” Thet said.

Affiliated Network for Social Ac c o u n t a b i l i t y e x e c u t i v e director San Chey said he supported strict enforcement of the law and urged transparency because, he said, in the past many police officers have “fined” offending motorists without issuing receipts.

“We all see police officers stopping law-breaking car drivers and motorbike riders and fining them. Some issue receipts but some others don’t. And they lift motorbikes onto their trucks to take them to police stations and wait to receive money.

“In this case, I think it’s not much of a warning because this sort of things happens time and time again and only one or two cases have been addressed,” he said.

A video clip was posted on social media on Tuesday showing the traffic policeman “fining” the driver.

I n t he v ideo, t he pol ic e of f ic er is seen negot iat i ng with the person who broke the law as to how much money should be paid.

Bunthoeun was seen accepting the fine and putting the money into his bag appare nt l y wi t hout i s s ui ng a receipt.