Mondulkiri provincial police on Sunday questioned 22 Chinese nationals suspected of holding expired passports after they were detained on Saturday at a hotel in Spean Meanchey commune’s Chambok village in Sen Monorom town.

Provincial police chief Lor Sokha told The Post on Sunday that the suspects were being questioned according to legal procedures after the police investigated the matter at a hotel they were staying at.

“We are still questioning them, it is not finished yet. So maybe on August 11, we will send them to the Department of Immigration in Phnom Penh to continue with the legal process.

“Of the 22 Chinese nationals, 10 have valid documents and passports, and the others have expired passports and they have not yet applied for renewal,” Sokha said.

He confirmed that the suspects were not involved in any other offences and just don’t have sufficient documents to legally be allowed in the country. Some of them had yet to renew their expired visas, prompting authorities to take action.

A Sen Monorom town police officer who asked not to be named confirmed that the suspects had been sent to the provincial police commission.

He said police seized 34 computers, six laptops, nine USB flash drives, 200 unused SIM cards, 23 keyboards, 15 power strips, seven Wifi routers, a large number of phone chargers, 135 mobile phones (eight new and 127 used) and $445 in cash from the detainees.

The evidence is being held at the Mondulkiri provincial police station.

“There are not many Chinese in Sen Monorom town. They just visit and rest for four or five days only. There are no Chinese businessmen either because only Cambodian companies have invested in agriculture,” he said.