The Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Monday questioned the president of RSL Global Logistics following a complaint last month by Prime Minister Hun Sen’s youngest son, Hun Many, that his name was used to fast-track customs clearance at the Sihanoukville port.
Mr. Many filed the complaint on August 15 against RSL president Reach Sothon after learning that he sent text messages to port officials on August 5 informing them that a shipment from China of two vehicles, including an ambulance, belonged to Mr. Many in an attempt to obtain same-day customs clearance.
Court prosecutor Tob Chhun Long confirmed the questioning but declined to comment because the investigation was ongoing.
Ly Chantola, Mr. Many’s lawyer, said the complaint was intended to send a message to the public that the prime minister’s son would not tolerate individuals using his name to bypass the law.
“An apology would not be official redress so [the defendant] must face the procedure of the law,” Mr. Chantola said.
Mr. Sothon, whom the prosecutor identified as the president of RSL, said he attended the questioning to clarify events and admitted to asking port officials to expedite the cargo. But he said he had only done what his client—development company 7NG—had asked him to do.
“One of the vehicles was an ambulance that 7NG told me they were donating to [Mr. Many’s] youth group,” the Union of Youth Federations of Cambodia (UYFC), he said.
“On the evening of August 5, the customer asked me to send a message to the port because they were in a hurry to donate it,” Mr. Sothon said, adding that the cargo was otherwise legally documented.
“Now I worry very much about this and am not really sure that the vehicle belonged to [UYFC],” he said.
7NG chairman Srey Sothea on Tuesday confirmed that the company had taken delivery of an ambulance and would donate it to UYFC but said he was unaware of the issue at the port.
“I am donating an ambulance for transportation of victims in case any accidents happen,” he said. “But I don’t know about RSL’s order to make anything happen that has caused a problem with Hun Many.”
