Logo of Phnom Penh Post newspaper Phnom Penh Post - Hunt on for illegal loggers as timber found in Ratanakkiri

Hunt on for illegal loggers as timber found in Ratanakkiri

Content image - Phnom Penh Post
Most of the logs measure 40cm in diameter and are 2.5-3m long. Fresh News

Hunt on for illegal loggers as timber found in Ratanakkiri

Ratanakkiri provincial and O’Yadav district police forces seized 30 logs of mixed timber from a plantation in Pak Nhay commune’s Lom village on Sunday.

Police suspect traders hid the logs at the plantation while they waited to transport them to be sold in Vietnam.

District police chief Souy Samnang told The Post on Monday that the joint force was led by the deputy police chief in charge of anti-crime, Nov Dara.

The plantation is located along the Cambodia-Vietnam borderline and the logs were found in a forest nearby.

A motorbike which police suspect would be used to transport the timber was also found near the pile of logs. “Most of the logs measure 40cm in diameter and are 2.5-3m long,” he said.

Samnang said the logs and the motorbike were handed over to O’Yadav Forestry Administration experts. They will analyse them in an attempt to identify the owner, who will face legal action if caught.

Provincial Forestry Administration deputy head Hong Kea told The Post on Monday that he has yet to receive an official report on the measurement of the logs.

In a separate incident on June 25, Forestry Administration police forces seized 21 pieces of sralao timber.

Kea said that if the perpetrators are identified, they will be fined according to the law. But if no one comes forward to confess, the wood will be considered “timber of unidentified persons” and listed as state property.

MOST VIEWED

  • Joy as Koh Ker Temple registered by UNESCO

    Cambodia's Koh Ker Temple archaeological site has been officially added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List, during the 45th session of the World Heritage Committee held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on September 17. The ancient temple, also known as Lingapura or Chok Gargyar, is located in

  • Ream base allegations must end, urges official

    A senior government official urges an end to the allegations and suspicions surrounding the development of Cambodia’s Ream Naval Base, now that Prime Minister Hun Manet has addressed the issue on the floor of the 78th UN General Assembly (UNGA 78). Jean-Francois Tain, a geopolitical

  • Cambodia set to celebrate Koh Ker UNESCO listing

    To celebrate the inscription of the Koh Ker archaeological site on UNESCO’s World Heritage List, the Ministry of Cults and Religion has appealed to pagodas and places of worship to celebrate the achievement by ringing bells, shaking rattles and banging gongs on September 20. Venerable

  • CP denied registration documents by ministry

    The Ministry of Interior will not reissue registration documents to the Candlelight Party (CP). Following a September 21 meeting between ministry secretary of state Bun Honn and CP representatives, the ministry cited the fact that there is no relevant law which would authorise it to do

  • Manet touches down in Beijing for high-level meetings

    Prime Minister Hun Manet arrived in Beijing on September 14 for his first official visit to China, where he is slated to attend the 20th China-ASEAN Expo and meet other leaders including Chinese President Xi Jinping. Upon his arrival, Manet laid a wreath at the Monument

  • Cambodian diaspora laud Manet’s UN Assembly visit

    Members of the Cambodian diaspora are rallying in support of Prime Minister Hun Manet’s forthcoming visit to the 78th UN General Assembly (UNGA 78) in the US’ New York City this week. Their move is an apparent response to a recent call by self-exiled former