Commit a crime in Cambodia and face the consequences

February 23, 2011 · 40 comments

Yesterday I saw a motorbike zooming towards the Kampot jail with a man sat between two policeman. He was bare-chested and so I presumed he was a thief who had just been apprehended.

If convicted this is where he will end up:

Kampot Prison, Cambodia

Kampot Prison

It got me thinking about how different things are here. I get that police vans are expensive but it just seemed totally bizarre that a criminal was being transported on a motorbike with two other people already on it.

Thief in Cambodia after a mob beating

A thief in Cambodia after a mob beating

When I was first arrived in Phnom Penh in 2002 I was amazed, shocked but also oddly fascinated when I experienced a mob beating.  A bag snatcher had been caught in a local market near to where I was living and I watched as the local community beat him to within an inch of his life. It was quite a harrowing experience that I will never forget but interestingly I remained as a spectator until the police eventually turned up and dragged him away.

Mob beatings and killings continue to happen in Cambodia. Only last year three thieves were caught stealing a motorbike outside Phnom Penh from two sisters. Four hundred villagers then administered beatings that left two dead and one severely injured.  The police were too scared to intervene for fear that the crowd may turn on them too.

Someone actually caught the image of the beating taking place. It is a bit gruesome but for those who are inquisitive it can found here along with a brief article.

In Phnom Penh shoplifters who are caught in the supermarkets are shamed on a poster for all to see. I can’t see this happening in Boots or Tescos back home.

Shoplifters in Phnom Penh

Shoplifters at Lucky Supermarket in Phnom Penh

Luckily we live in a part of Cambodia now where there are very few instances of thieving.

However, a few weeks ago three guys walked into one of my shops in Phnom Penh, pulled a gun on the staff member present and walked off with a 64GB iPad. Nothing could be done and the police weren’t even informed, simple as that.

The problem, as I see it, is that the police here do hot have the resources, training or financing to put together a decent force and so robberies and thieving will continue.  Until this is resolved I fear that communities will continue to take matters into their own hands and therefore countries such as Cambodia will continue to be thought of as backward and a bit uncouth.

Every so often when I see an instance like the police with a thief on a motorbike it reminds me that I am choosing to live in a third world country where things work very, very differently to back home.

Any ideas on how to tackle crime here or in other third world countries? Has anyone witnesses a mob beating? Leave a comment if you have one.

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Tagged as: cambodia, crime, justice

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  • http://prawnseyeview.blogspot.com/ Igor Prawn

    And sometimes foreigners too – there was an incident a few years back where a barang tried to hold up a bank with a pistol. On the way out he ran into the glass door (closed) and stunned himself, whereupon the security guard arrested him.

    Which brings me to the point: private security. When the police are as useful as a spaghetti necktie, the average property-owner’s thoughts turn to DIY. As the above example sadly shows, the guard may not do anything unless it’s clear that his skin isn’t at risk (the barang bank-robber dropped his gun when he ran into the door), but his presence may deter others.

    And for those who can’t afford a guard, there’s mob-retribution. Fast, sure, and often lethal. Oddly enough it doesn’t seem to have cut the attraction of crime as a profession – food for thought there.

    • Simon

      Poor, poor Francois. Such a sad attempt at a bank robbery.

      The thing is with private security firms is that, as I am sure you are aware, most are pretty shoddy with guards who are either worse than useless or dishonest themselves.

      Yes I am surprised that a public beating to death doesn’t deter more. It would certainly make me think twice before I tried snatching someone’s wallet.

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  • http://looseandleafy.blogspot.com/ Lucy Corrander

    Disconcerting post and I sort of wish I hadn’t read it as it will haunt me, not just with the facts but the what-could-be-done-ness? of it. Does what you are saying mean the thief on the motorbike was lucky to be on his way to prison because, however bad that may be, at least he is alive?

    Lucy

    • Simon

      Actually the photo is of one of the three thieves from the motorbike robbery. He pretended he was dead and it was only after he had been dumped on a truck and taken to the pagoda for cremation that it was realised that he was still alive.

      As you say chilling.

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  • http://www.thephnompen.asia thephnompen

    I am all for a good beating when it comes to thieves. I also believe they should have their hands chopped off a la Sharia Law. There is a district in the US where it is COMPULSORY for every home to have a gun in it.Their incidence of home invasion /theft dropped to almost nothing because the thieves knew what was waiting inside. Love is a warm 9mm………………….

    • Simon

      I have to say that there was a part of me that was thinking “well you deserved this” as I was watching the locals lay into the thief.

      But still you can’t run a society where the neighbourhood decides who is guilty and then deals with them as they see fit.

  • http://kampotboat.com Cédric

    Very good post ! I never saw a mob beating, must be very impressive !!!

  • Tricia

    It’s pretty scary. Mob justice brings us all down to the level of the offender. In a properly run society there is no place for mob justice, but nobody even pretends Cambodia is a properly run society. I think that is the saddest part of the whole thing.

    • Simon

      Thanks for the comment Tricia.

      I try not to read too much news and things while living here in Cambodia. it often just depresses me too much.

  • http://www.thephnompen.asia thephnompen

    “But still you can’t run a society where the neighborhood decides who is guilty and then deals with them as they see fit”

    Old chap…..come in out of your garden, stop hugging that tree, pour that chardonnay down the sink and get with the programme. When you wake up in the middle of the night and some local paddy wackers are rifling through your house stealing your Apple mac etc what r u going to do ? Call 911 ? You is a lad innit ! I know what u r going to do……;-)

    Me…..if they make it past my German Shepherd I am going to taser them and then beat them with a baseball bat BEFORE walking outside and yelling JOW !! JOW !! at the top of my voice and then turning them over to the mob for the final act. I got robbed at gunpoint the week before my wedding and ever since then I have 0 tolerance.

    • Simon

      Right – I will remember to call first before I pay a impromptu house visit round your’s.

      • http://www.polskey.com Olivia

        ha ha ha ha ha

      • Paul

        HAHAHAHAHA

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  • http://www.acceleratedstall.com Maria

    I’ve seen a mob beating. 15 (mixed races and ages) on one in the middle of the street beneath my apartment. 2005, Seattle, WA, USA.

    It’s a gruesome sight. The cops were called, they took 10 minutes or longer to come so most of it was done by the time they arrived and when they did, most of the crowd/mob had dispersed. The street cleaner arrived and removed all trace of the incident. Nothing ever appeared in the public crime reports.

    I never saw anything like that in Cambodia or elsewhere in the world… perhaps it’s all down to time and place. I’m grateful I’ve not witnessed that again.

    • Simon

      That’s scary. I imagine you can inflict quite a serious amount of damage in 10 minutes.

      The difference here is that the cops will not get involved often as too scared.

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  • http://www.thephnompen.asia thephnompen

    BTW mate – you are looking right skinny these days ! hansum even !

    • Simon

      Well thank you – it’s the new regime. Eat well & get off my arse once in a while.

  • http://khmerbird.com Santel

    You have mentioned something interesting here,
    I never experience by seeing the real mob beating but I heard a lot about it.
    We saw everyday the polices take money from the motorbike rider, taxi driver, Van driver, Container driver etc … we don’t know what are these money for?

    I believed Gov need to spend sometime to improve on this sector!

    • Simon

      Thanks for the comment Santel.

      I think until we see the police force receiving a real salary then there will be an apathy to tackle crime and they will have to concentrate on getting money from regular law abiding people in order to make a living.

  • khmerhit

    It’s a pity the kleptocrats don’t receive the same treatment, but of course a RICH thief is respected. White collar crime is similarly leniently punished here in Canuckistan, for the most part.

    • Simon

      I’ve never heard ‘kleptocrats’ before. That’s great.

      I agree. Someone that let’s say has swindled millions of dollars out of foreign governments is well respected and admired.

  • Tricia

    You hit the nail on the head with your comment to Santel. In Australia, police are well paid, in most states get double the standard annual leave and heaps of perks, the main one being a very, very good pension. There will always be corruption at a high level, this can’t be avoided when dealing with drugs and serious offenders, but the average officer on the street has got too much to lose to risk going down the path of taking bribes. I believe it’s a similar story in Canada and probably in most western countries. I’m originally from England and whilst they may grumble a bit – doesn’t everybody? – until the day I left the country in my mid twenties I saw no sign of corruption. I think in Australia the one GIVING the money is equally liable to prosecution as the one RECEIVING. If it isn’t law, it should be. No country can have a hope of getting anything right unless it’s police force is, on the whole, not only free of corruption but SEEN to be free of corruption. I would have no hesitation in phoning the police AND giving evidence in an open court if I saw a customs officer or any other official trying to extract an extra ‘fee’ or ‘payment’ from anyone at home – either UK or Australia. Unless the police force is clean, there is no hope for any improvement in any society, and the only way to have a clean police force is to make it not worth their while to be corrupt. Sadly, it’s accepted as the norm in South East Asia. I have a friend (Vietnamese, living in Saigon) who factors it in to her monthly budget. Things appear no different here in Thailand. In Indonesia it costs the equivalent of around $10,000 to get into the police force – I know first hand from someone who is married to a policeman otherwise I wouldn’t have believed it. That’s a lot of money in the west, never mind for an average mum and dad in Indonesia. The investment has to be recouped somehow. The sad thing there is that there are few tourists outside of Bali, so it’s the ones who can least afford to make these subjective payments – the locals.

    Still, as you mentioned in the original post; we choose to live here. And no, I’ve never paid any undocumented ‘fee’ to anyone during my 4 years in Asia. My husband used roll his eyes and say ‘For God’s sake, it’s only a couple of dollars’, but now he just finds somewhere to sit down and wait until I’m done. A bit of inconvenience, held up for longer than we need to be, but I’ve never paid up. Occasionally I’ll go on a letter writing campaign – I’m yet to receive a single response, but sending mass emails helps me vent of a little steam. It took me a while to get used to the lack of logical thought in Asia. It took me a full year to get used to the couldn’t care less attitudes – I don’t get impatient any more when I go into a shop and everyone remains glued to the TV, they’ll come and serve me when they’re ready to. But I’ll never pay a bribe. I’ve been told I need to lose that attitude if I’m going to continue living in Asia, but I can’t. Surely I’m not alone?

    • Simon

      “My husband used roll his eyes and say ‘For God’s sake, it’s only a couple of dollars’, but now he just finds somewhere to sit down and wait until I’m done”.

      Your husband sounds like a very patient man.

      Thanks for the comment. I’ve sent you an email.

  • X-expat

    “Is Cambodge… Is the life!” as a certain French-Khmer friend would say

  • Nathan

    I would say that their should be a more tactical and focused vigilante/police group who focus on the actual criminals. Like working from the top to the bottom of criminal organization.

    • Simon Oliver

      Like most things here I presume it comes down to resources, training and manpower.

  • Irish rover

    As you say there is very little thieving  perhaps the local way is best I am moving there next mounth

  • Phirumthong

    It is a wonderful country in the world

  • Barkester

    Back home the rice farmers pay the same taxes as the gold sellers. Here’ if you sell gold or I-pads, you bring more potential crime to an area as you’re displaying wealth. Part of good business here is to make your own security plans and military guys are available complete with full auto for as little as $90/mo. Donations to your local police(tan shirts) allow them to hire more police in your hood.
      Here we must take responsibility for our own security. Its time-consuming, but its good! 2 reasons: The poor don’t pay for the rich’s right to display wealth and truthfully governments tend to screw up anything they do for me anyway. If you want it done right, do it yourself.
       Want to display your wealth to the poor? Support your local police and create good security measures. Its easy when you know how and far more moral than asking the poor to pay you bills for you. They’ve enough to worry about.
       The system here is better and more moral. Simply learn to use it.