Only 8 Responses to 34 Requests for Investigative Cooperation with Cambodia

China Tops List for Most International Cooperation Requests

Throughout this year, the police have made over 30 requests for international cooperation to Cambodia via Interpol, but only a very small number have received responses.

According to data received by Assemblyman Jeong Chunsaeng of the Rebuilding Korea Party, a member of the National Assembly's Public Administration and Security Committee, from the National Police Agency on the 16th, the police requested international cooperation from Cambodia 34 times between January and October 15.

The scene of the 'Mango Complex,' known as a crime hub near Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on the 16th (local time). Photo by Yonhap News

By type of charge, economic crimes such as voice phishing accounted for the largest share with 26 cases, followed by four cases of abduction or luring, two cases of sexual crimes, one case of assault, intimidation, or injury, and one case of robbery or theft. Of these, only eight cases (23.5%) received a response from the Cambodian authorities: six involving voice phishing and two involving abduction or luring.

The country to which the police most frequently requested international cooperation was China, with 85 cases. Economic crimes such as voice phishing accounted for the largest share, with 45 cases. There were 62 requests for cooperation with Vietnam, which borders Cambodia, and 11 with Thailand, another neighboring country. The police do not keep statistics on the response rate from countries other than Cambodia.

Assemblyman Jeong stated, "Crimes such as voice phishing, sexual offenses, and assault or intimidation are serious not only in Cambodia but also in other countries abroad," emphasizing that "international investigative responses and cooperation are urgently needed."