Drug Crimes Rise, ‘Irregularities’ in Figures: Police

Despite noting widespread irregularities in the provincial reports submitted, the National Police said yesterday that the number of drug offenses in the first four months of 2016 is almost equal to those for all of 2014. Speaking at an annual meeting yesterday, Deputy Chief of the National Police commission against drugs Mok Chito said Cambodia, as well as many other ASEAN countries, had failed to achieve their goal of effectively combating drug offenses, due in part to what he says is the “complicated” nature of the modern drug trade in the Kingdom.

Cambodia, he said, continued to suffer the effects of widespread drug manufacturing and circulation. “With the influence of drug use, criminal offenses have become more brutally violent. They [drug traffickers] have killed victims in crowds and during the day time. In some cases, they killed their own parents. “I would like all of you to focus more and crack down on drug addicts. We cannot let them cause chaos and social instability,” Mr. Chito said.

A summarized report of anti-drug police activity released yesterday said drug offenses has jumped remarkably within the first four months of 2016, with National Police cracking down on 932 cases of drug crime and arresting 2,220 suspects. The figure is almost as high as the total amount of drug crimes handled in 2014. In that year police dealt with 996 cases and detained 2,235 people.

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