Amid a recent rise in crimes such as kidnapping and confinement targeting Koreans in Cambodia, Yoo Jae-seong, acting commissioner general of the Korean National Police Agency (Vice Administrator), said on the 13th, "If the Cambodian police have no intention to cooperate, it will be difficult to find effective measures."
At a regular press briefing on the 13th, Acting Chief Yoo said, "Compared to other Southeast Asian countries, Cambodia's cooperation with police authorities is relatively not smooth," adding the above.
He added, "We will work in coordination with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and foreign authorities." This is taken to mean that, in addition to direct communication between police authorities, indirect methods will also be mobilized.
On the 23rd, Acting Chief Yoo will hold a bilateral meeting with the vice administrator of the Cambodian Korean National Police Agency and request the following: ▲ push to establish a Korean Desk ▲ an on-site visit by the head of the National Office of Investigation ▲ expansion of personnel for international cooperation.
When asked whether "due to Cambodia's political background and other issues, it would be difficult to accept the Korean police's requests for cooperation," Acting Chief Yoo acknowledged practical difficulties but said, "Rather than doing nothing, if we keep visiting and making requests, and make requests through international organizations, I think we may be able to resolve uncooperative parts."
Regarding a recent case in which a university student in Cambodia died after being tortured by a criminal organization, a police official said, "Procedures such as an autopsy of the body are being delayed under criminal justice cooperation," and noted that a domestic joint investigation team will soon be dispatched to Cambodia for investigative cooperation.
Meanwhile, Acting Chief Yoo is scheduled to preside over an internal meeting at 3 p.m. today to discuss "measures to respond to crimes targeting Koreans in Cambodia and to strengthen international cooperation." The police will also work with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, and other related ministries to expand the deployment of police consuls to areas where crimes targeting Koreans are frequent, and will push to reinforce the Korean National Police Agency with 30 personnel for international cooperative investigations.