Truong Mealy, the former Cambodian ambassador to Japan, said he had a “bitter taste of disgust” when he read news reports of the government filing a complaint against him for allegedly embezzling $700,000 during his posting in Tokyo.
Truong Mealy defended himself in an e-mail message that he sent from his home in Paris, where he is working on a book on the relationship between Japan and Cambodia.
Government officials said they have not been able to find Truong Mealy after he left his posting in Japan at the end of 1998.
Foreign Affairs Minister Hor Namhong said last week Truong Mealy (Fun) stole rent money that a Japanese firm paid for use of part of a building belonging to the Cambodian embassy in Tokyo during 1998.
Officials also blame him for pocketing visa fees. The government filed a complaint in the Japanese courts.
“I am in some ways a poor person, financially speaking, but I know my heart is rich.,” Truong Mealy said in his e-mail. “Unfortunately our modern world does not have a good device to measure our human honesty. How I wish I could obtain such huge amount of moneys…”
Ok Socheat, a member of the Foreign Affairs Commission in the National Assembly, said Sunday he will send a copy of Truong Mealy’s letter to Hor Namhong, who will decide what to do next.
“I’m sure [Truong Mealy] doesn’t want to come back to Cambodia,” Ok Socheat said.
The government also filed a complaint against the Japanese firm currently renting the building, because the company claims it owns the land and the facility, Ok Socheat said.
(Additional reporting by Thet Sambath)
