Police arrested a woman on suspicion of human trafficking in Tbong Khmum province’s Suong City on Monday, after the woman was found with a teenage girl whose parents had raised the alarm with local authorities once she went missing in Ratanakkiri province, officials said Tuesday.
Suong City police chief Chhorn Sothorn said Vy Sreyneat, 26, was arrested when police discovered her in a van with the 14-year-old girl after the child’s parents informed local police in Ratanakkiri that they feared she had been trafficked earlier that day.
He added that authorities caught up with the pair after they called the girl on her mobile phone and asked her to put them in touch with the driver of the van.
The driver then managed to inform the police that he planned to make a stop in Suong City.
“The woman brought her from her house after persuading her that she could find a better job,” Mr. Sothorn said.
He said Ms. Sreyneat had denied the accusation of human trafficking and told police that the girl had left home voluntarily because she wanted to work in Kompong Cham province.
