A French tourist was arrested in Daun Penh district on Friday after a children’s rights organization reported to police that it was investigating him for allegedly having sex with young boys.
When police entered 34-year-old Olivier Frenoy’s guest house around midnight on Friday they found him with two boys, ages 14 and 15, Municipal Foreign Police Chief Pol Phiethey said Sunday.
“He had sex with the underage boys,” said Pol Phiethey, adding that police also found about 80 pornographic pictures of young boys in the suspect’s Sras Chak commune guest house.
The suspect is being detained and will be sent to Phnom Penh Municipal Court this afternoon, Pol Phiethey said.
According to Hang Vibol, country director of Action Pour Les Enfants, Frenoy has visited Cambodia about five times in the past several months.
“My organization has been investigating [Frenoy] for about a year but closely followed him on Wednesday and Thursday before reporting him to police,” he said, adding that the suspect picked up the two boys near the Royal Palace around 11 pm on Friday.
“People come here just to prey on children,” said Minister of Women’s and Veteran’s Affairs Mu Sochua. “And we are having more boy [victims] lately.”
“Sometimes the judge does not base his decision on all of the evidence, or evidence is lost,” she said. “That’s when justice is not served.”
The minister said that victims of underage sex crimes need to be protected because many times they are persuaded to change their story and the case is thrown out for lack of evidence.
“There are many hurdles to jump through,” Mu Sochua said. “Although if anyone wants to implement the laws, it is easy. It just takes a lot of cooperation.”
Another French national, Pierre Guynot, 44, was arrested in Sihanoukville in May 2001 and accused of having sex with young boys. He was tried the following November and released from charges of debauchery and illegal confinement when court officials said they needed more evidence.
