Phnom Penh police demoted a traffic officer after he chased down an online seller’s Range Rover over unclear reasons after working hours, sparking a widely shared social media complaint.
The municipal police said in a statement issued Thursday that around 2 a.m. on January 19, Chim Salin pursued a black SUV from the Chamkarmon traffic light.
The statement said the chase was at high speed, but did not clarify whether the Range Rover had been speeding.
When the driver stopped, Salin told her she had not been wearing a seatbelt and demanded a “compromise,” the statement said.
“Obviously, this enforcement did not follow the principles or regulations from the head of the unit, and this action is not in accordance with law enforcement hours, so the Phnom Penh police decided to impose discipline,” it said. Salin was demoted one rank and transferred out of the traffic police unit, it said.
The driver, who goes by Yubee Ly on Facebook, made a post shared over 5,000 times about the incident.
“Please be careful, it is almost 3 o’clock in the morning,” she wrote. “I had my belt on. Why did he chase me from the Chamkarmon to the Chbar Ampov traffic lights? When I took out my phone, he drove away.”
Phnom Penh police chief Sar Thet and spokesman San Sokseyha could not be reached on Friday.
