Details of the Kingdom’s new anti-scam bill have been revealed to the public for the first time, with Minister of Justice Koeut Rith holding a press conference to explain the draft, today, April 3.
The law is expected to be passed by the Cambodian Senate later today.
Under the new legislation, individuals who commit online fraud will face between 2 and 5 years in prison and fines ranging from 200 million (approximately $50,000) to 500 million riel ($125,000).
If the offense is committed by an organised group or involves multiple victims, the penalty increases to between 5 and 10 years in prison and a fine of 500 million to one billion riel ($250,000), explained the minister.
“The act of organising or directing a place for committing online scams through which is centralised or structured in the form of a centre which allows multiple individuals to assemble as a group or network, whether with or without a defined management structure, for the purpose of committing online scams, shall constitute the offense of organising or directing an online scams centre,” said article six of the draft.
Such an offense shall be punishable by imprisonment from five to 10 ten years and a fine from 500 million to one billion riel.
If the same group involve the act of organising of directing separate places, but are connected or coordinated as a network in any form to commit online scams, even if not centralised in the same location, the penalty will increase to between 10 and 20 years, with a fine of from 1 billion to 2 billion riel ($250,000).
“Where the act of organising or directing an online scams centre results in the death of one or more persons, it shall be punishable by imprisonment from 15 to 30 years or by life imprisonment,” said the draft.
Those who recruit or train others for the purpose of committing online scams shall be punishable by imprisonment from two to five years and a fine from 200 hundred million to 500 hundred million riel.
If the act of recruiting or training others to commit online scams involved violence, torture, detention or results in the death of a person, the imprisonment terms increase to between five and ten years, with fines increasing to from 500 hundred million to one billion riel.