Cambodian vigilante mob kills two bandits: police

Angry Cambodian villagers attack three alleged bandits
One of the thieves who was still alive (Photo: DAP news)

PHNOM PENH, March 26 (AFP) - A mob of about 400 Cambodians armed with stones, iron bars and wooden sticks, attacked three alleged bandits being held by police, killing two of them, police said Friday.

The incident took place on Thursday night after the three men allegedly used a gun to rob two sisters of their motorcycle on the outskirts of the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh, said Born Sam Art, police chief of Dangkao district.

He said the women called the police, who engaged in a brief gunfight with the alleged robbers before arresting them.

But about 400 villagers from three nearby communes then "grabbed the robbers from police and attacked them with stones, iron bars, and wooden sticks," Born Sam Art told AFP.

He said two of the bandits were killed on the spot while a third remained critically injured. Police fired warning shots to disperse the vigilante group.

In a bizarre twist, the injured criminal was initially thought to be dead and taken away with the two other bodies, but awoke as Buddhist laymen were preparing to cremate them, Born Sam Art said.

Angry mobs often attempt to take justice into their own hands in Cambodia, where the judicial system is widely believed to be weak and corrupt.

Angry village mob in Cambodia kills suspected bike thieves

The throng of about 400 villagers was so frenzied that police got scared, chief says

Friday, Mar. 26, 2010
Globe and Mail

An angry village mob in Cambodia armed with bamboo sticks and stones beat to death two suspected robbers, dragging them away from police who had arrested them for stealing a motorcycle, police said Friday.

The throng of about 400 villagers was so frenzied that police got scared, said Maj. Bonn Sam Ath, a police chief in the district of Dangkor, on the western outskirts of the capital.

“The villagers threatened to attack us if we refused to hand over the suspects to them,” Bonn Sam Ath said. “We had no choice. They would have beaten us too if we protected the suspects.”

The men were among three people arrested Thursday for allegedly stealing a motorcycle from two sisters, who were riding it when attackers hit them over the head with pistols. The women were hospitalized in critical condition.

Word spread through the village that police had detained suspects, prompting a crowd led by relatives of the victims to await their arrival near the police station, said Bonn Sam Ath, adding that police initially tried to protect the suspects.

The third suspected robber survived by pretending he was dead, he said. Police do not plan to press charges because they do not know which members of the mob were responsible for the murders, he added.

Mob killings are not uncommon in rural Cambodia, where police are often seen as corrupt and villagers take justice into their own hands.

AK-47 Bandits are robbing Phnom Penh dwellers at gunpoint

Monday, September 17, 2007
Everyday.com.kh
Translated from Khmer by Socheata

A group of armed thieves, toting AK-47 rifles, continue to rob motorcycles at gunpoint in Phnom Penh city. The bandits have no fear of anywhere in the city, and they give police a headache because the police traps could not catch them. Recently again, the group of AK-47 bandits safely conducted another attack by robbing a C-cube 50 motorcycle at 7:45 PM on 15 September, along a street located in Trapeang Chhouk village, Teuk Thla commune, Russei Keo district, Phnom Penh city. The armed robbery was conducted in front of the victim’s house when the victim was unlocking the gate to his house. Yon Touch, the 33-year-old male motorcycle owner, is a teacher. Local newspapers reported that the AK-47 bandits travel on a red C-100 motorcycle, and most of their attacks are conducted in Russei Keo Tuol Kok districts. The police could not arrest them, no matter how hard it tries.