Dutch national Stefan Struik has been charged by Mondulkiri Provincial Court with failing to report mistreatment of a minor and concealing evidence, according to court spokesman Meas Pros.
Struik’s Vietnamese boyfriend, Nguyen Tangdung, filmed himself torturing and sexually assaulting a 2-year-old boy across four days in August and fled to Vietnam last week after videos of the abuse surfaced online.
In an audio recording of Struik’s interrogation by police, the Dutchman admitted to encouraging Tangdung to travel to Vietnam, claiming he felt it was a matter for Vietnamese police. Tangdung was apprehended on Wednesday by detectives in Saigon, where he remains.
James McCabe – of Cambodia’s Child Protection Unit (CPU), which has been assisting in their investigation – said CPU hoped Tangdung would be prosecuted in Cambodia, noting that under Vietnamese law, he would face a maximum of three years in jail, compared to 30 in Cambodia.
Justice Ministry spokesman Chin Malin yesterday said Tangdung would likely be tried in Vietnam. “They don’t extradite their citizens to us,” he said. McCabe noted that every country has the right to request extradition.
