Six farmers have confessed to impersonating Interior Ministry police officials and setting up a roadblock in Kratie province to extort money from drivers transporting wood, officials said on Friday.
Snuol district police officials arrested the cassava and soybean farmers—Vann Veasna, 22; Vann Sangha, 20; Moa Cheva, 20; Vann Somnang, 23; Pon Sutra, 26; and Kach Bunly, 20—in Pi Thnou commune at about 9:30 p.m. on Thursday after receiving reports from villagers that the men were dressed in uniforms and behaving strangely, said Hout Limheng, chief of the provincial police serious crimes bureau.
“They had ranks and names on their uniforms, but they did not have ID numbers,” Mr. Limheng said.
He said the farmers had confessed to the scheme during questioning on Friday.
District police chief Chan Sokhim said the men had taken 20,000 riel, or about $5, from the wood transporters they stopped over a two-hour period.
Provincial police chief Lun Sophath said the group, which had produced fake documents authorizing the roadblock, would be questioned at the provincial court on Saturday.
