4 police officers arrested for accepting bribes

Four police officers were recently arrested over bribery charges, including chief commissioner of Khovd Province Police Department, Colonel Ts.Ganbold, and head of the Third Songinokhairkhan District Police Department, Lieutenant Colonel S.Batzaya.

S.Batzaya was reportedly caught in the act, accepting a bribe of over 20,000 USD, and the Primary Court of Bayanzurkh District immediately issued his arrest at Detention Center No.461 on June 22. In relation to S.Batzaya’s bribery case, Ts.Ganbold was also arrested.

A source from the General Police Department confirmed S.Batzaya’s arrest saying, “It is true that Lieutenant Colonel S.Batzaya has been detained on suspicion of accepting a bribe. I cannot disclose any further information.”

Last Sunday, three more people were arrested in connection to this case, according to a source from the General Police Department. The police named Deputy Head of General Archive Authority B.Unenbat, Head of Sukhbaatar District’s Traffic Police Department D.Munkhbold, and S.Chinbat, who was imprisoned several times for robbery and theft in the past.

Some sources say that S.Chinbat might have “planned out” the delivery of the bribe to S.Batzaya, while others suspect that a high-ranking state official connected to a bribe case at a wolfram deposit in Tsetseg soum in Khovd Province is bribing police officers to “get rid of nuisances”.

D.Munkhbold, on the other hand, is also suspected of accepting a bribe of three million MNT in the guise of donation for his child’s medical treatment from his subordinates.

Immediately after S.Batzaya, the chief of the General Police Department replaced S.Batzaya with Colonel G.Erdenebaatar, who used to head the Third Songinokhairkhan District Police Department before being appointed to chief of staff of the Criminal Division and later, chief commissioner of Darkhan-Uul Provincial Police Department.