Prolific snatch thieves arrested
DAUN Penh district police in the capital have rounded up 11 prolific snatch thieves and will send them to the court this week.
District police chief Tieng Chansa said on Tuesday that police launched an investigation after getting many complaints from victims.
On Thursday last week, they arrested two men identified as Kim Sreng, 21, and Chhim Heng Long, 30. The pair was responsible for at least 23 robberies in the capital.
They revealed the identities of their accomplices to police, who then arrested another three suspects on Saturday. They were identified as Roeun Sophanith, 18, Sorn Veasna, 18, and Thorng Panhchakban, 18. The three were responsible for 36 snatch thefts in the capital.
Also on Saturday, police arrested three others identified as Chy Pich Veasna, 18, who snatched items from victims 20 times, Kong Puthea, 18, who committed 13 snatch thefts, and a 17-year-old student in Meanchey district who committed the crime 14 times.
Chansa said his officers worked with Lvea Em district police in Kandal province on Sunday to arrest the final three suspects, aged 14 to 17. Two of them are students in Daun Penh and Russey Keo districts, with one of them having committed the crime up to 48 times.
The groups confessed they snatched bags and mobile phones at more than 20 locations in the capital, he said.
“Currently, police are questioning the 11 suspects at the district police station and after that, they will be sent to court,” Chansa said.
Photos of the 11 suspects were also posted on the National Police website on Monday.
National Police spokesman Chhay Kim Khoeun said on Tuesday that the suspects stole a lot of items from victims and sometimes their escapades resulted in injuries or death to property owners.
“Some are minors, but they caused a lot of problems. We don’t want to violate the rights of minors or the law. The most important thing is that we want them not to repeat the crime and we want the public to understand why we took action and to take safety precautions,” he said.