A 50-year-old man was charged yesterday by Phnom Penh Municipal Court for allegedly trafficking 15 Cambodians to Thailand and will await his hearing in Prey Sar prison, anti-trafficking officials said.

Seng Hay, 50, from Takeo’s Borei Cholsar district, is charged with luring the labourers across the border with promises of work, said Lieutenant Colonel Keo Thea, chief of the municipal anti-human trafficking and juvenile protection unit.

“He was arrested … while he was preparing the 15 people from Kampong Cham province to leave Phnom Penh in taxis and illegally cross checkpoints in Poipet,” Thea said, adding that if found guilty, Hay could face 15 years in prison.

The 15 each paid the accused $150 to arrange transport across the border, said Thea’s deputy, Major Khat Phalla.