ENHANCING INVESTIGATIVE ABILITY IN CORRUPTION CASES
Sophany Khiev *I.

MEASURES FOR ENHANCING INVESTIGATIVE ABILITY
IN CORRUPTION CASES

Every country in the world is affected by corruption. It undermines democratic institutions,slows economic development and contributes to the instability of governments. The Royal
Government of Cambodia is one such government in which corruption continues to besystematic and linked with a number of issues.
Fighting corruption is prioritized by the Royal Government of Cambodia, as mentioned in
its Rectangular Strategy in 2003 where Good Governance is the core element and combating
corruption is in the first angle. Moreover, Samdech HUN Sen, the Prime Minister of Cambodia,
stated that the key thrust of the Royal Government of Cambodia’s strategy to fight corruption is
to take concrete actions that attack the roots of corruption. Nevertheless, there are only threearticles, prescribed in the criminal law act in 1992 — under the United Nations Transitional
Authority in Cambodia — related to corruption (embezzlement, bribe taking and bribe giving).
Until 17 April 2010, the anti-corruption law was promulgated by the King. This leads to thequotation of Prime Minister HUN Sen who stressed that fighting corruption is to make it so thateach individual does not want to, cannot and dares not to engage in corruption.
The Anti-Corruption Institution is a body that was established under the new law. This bodyis composed of the Anti-Corruption Council and the Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU). Regarding theinvestigation of corruption cases, Cambodia has started to implement two measures: TECHO
Operation and Open-up investigation in each ministry.
A. TECHO Operation
The TECHO Operation refers to the fixation of public service fees for each ministry. The
official public service fees are designed in the table format that is posted in public places as
public information. Every ministry and public institution is bound to publish the official fee for
their public service activities (1). The obvious advantage of that operation is the guaranty ofrevenue collection (2).

*Under Secretary of State of the Ministry of Justice, Cambodia.

- 59 -

1.

Getting All Ministries Engaged(i) Facilitating Investigation
The opportunity for corruption has been reduced since the public has been informed about
the official fees for public services, and, thus, the public participate actively in combating
corruption. However, there are some people who bribe to accelerate the processing of their
documents. In this regard, the other officials and people concerned join hands in theinvestigation. For instance, in the company registration process, one applicant can claim that
another one who submitted the application later received the certificate sooner. The first
applicant can prove the date using the receipt as evidence. In such cases, it may be a group of
officials who take bribes to accelerate the process. By making the processing of public services
more transparent, applicants are able to look at each other's activities and hold public officials
accountable. In addition to improving investigation with the help of the public, we can also
strengthen the ability of officials to resist bribery.
(ii) Reduction in corruption cases
The TECHO Operation has been working very well. It always reminds the officials not totake extra fees or unofficial fees from applicants. Step by step, the number of corruption cases
has been reduced steadily. This operation greatly facilitates investigation through the comparison
between the official fees disseminated and the unofficial fees demanded by the officials.
2.

Ensuring the Collection of Revenue
Before the so called TECHO Operation, the collection of revenue was an issue for the State.
This means the State was not able to govern the amount of revenue collected. Fees depended oneach ministry or institution. It is hard to express that the State lost its power in terms ofcollecting taxes. Without the TECHO Operation, the Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) could hardly
accomplish its work. This Unit was inactive and the investigations were limited. The reason isthat ACU did not know about the public service fees to be paid. Since the TECHO Operation has
been in place, there have been many MOUs, or Joint Prakas, between each ministry and theMinistry of Economics and Finance regarding the fees collected for the State.
B. Opportunity for Investigation
1. Posting of ACU Officials in the Ministries
Some of the duties of the ACU are to monitor, investigate, check, and do research as well as
propose measures related to corrupt practices in ministries, institutions, and public and private
units, in conformity with the procedures in force. Accordingly, some officials of the ACU arebound to investigate directly and thoroughly each department of all ministries. This option
facilitates the investigators in accomplishing their mission. They work closely with thedepartments concerned. These cases are not complicated to investigate since the ACU officials
know the identities of the suspects and witnesses, which allows our investigators to discovercases in flagrante delicto.
2.

Complaint System
Concerned people have many ways to make their complaints to the ACU or offices in the
Capital or to branch offices in all provinces of the Kingdom of Cambodia. From our experiences,- 60 -

there are (i) six ways to report corruption offences, and (ii) considering the contents of thosecomplaints, many of them are quite related to corruption cases. .
(i) Forms of complaints madeTo start with, complainants can contact the ACU directly by phone (1282) or email:info@acu.gov.kh or complaint@acu.gov.kh. Secondly, they hand deliver complaint letters to the
ACU. Moreover, there are many white boxes on the public streets for receiving any complaints.
In addition, they can send their complaints through the post office. Finally, they can submit
complaints via the ACU’s website. The guidelines on reporting corruption and complaints areavailable to the public and can be downloaded at www.acu.gov.kh. However the guidelines are
only in the Khmer language. In addition, the complaint procedure and decision-making process
are currently in draft form, but we expect them to be finalized soon.
(ii) The analysis of those complaints
Even though there are many complaints made, most of them are not related to corruption
offences. They are mostly about politics or do not fall within the competency of the ACU. In
addition, some complaints are discovered to be false after the investigation. For instance, there
was a case in which the mayor was accused of taking money for free official documents from thevillagers. However, we found that the mayor was innocent after officials of the ACU interviewed
most of the villagers. In this regard, the villagers defended the mayor and complimented his hard
work. In this case, it was about a political issue where the opposition wanted to accuse thegovernment of wrongdoing. Thus, the investigation was closed. In some cases, there arecomplaints made by officials of NGOs who accuse project managers of embezzlement.
Accordingly, the ACU cannot start an investigation since these cases are not within the scope theAnti-Corruption Law, even though Article 3 provides that this law is applicable to all forms ofcorruption in all sections and at all levels throughout the Kingdom of Cambodia which occur
after the law took effect. Based on the interpretation of this article, it is not within thecompetency of the ACU. The ACU can only inform the donor about the alleged embezzlement.
II.

MECHANISM, PROCEDURE AND HUMAN RESOURCES

A. Mechanism and Procedure
Mechanism and procedure are main points related to the investigation of corruption cases
and will be described below.
1.

Mechanism(i) Interview
There are many skills and tactics to interview both suspects and witnesses successfully. To
start with, it is important to note that cooperation from the witnesses is crucial. On the other hand,the suspects never tell the truth and manipulate the situation. Then, from our experience there are
two kinds of questions: closed questions and open questions. Accordingly, interviewers use thesetactics to make the witnesses comfortable and to make them feel that their identity is secure.
Moreover, building the witnesses’ confidence and trust in the ACU is indispensable. Somewitnesses refuse to tell the truth. The reason is that they think they will be accused as well. For
example, in the case of the head of the anti-drug unit who participated in drug trafficking, there- 61 -

is no official who would dare to report his offence because they are the ones who take the bribeson his behalf and manipulate the documents. If they didn’t follow his instructions, they would
lose their positions. Concerning the suspects, the interviewers try to convince the suspect toconfess in exchange for the ACU’s report to Court that the suspect/witness cooperated in theinvestigation.
(ii) Covert techniques
According to Article 25 of Anti-Corruption Law, the court can order the ACU to undertake
forensic inquiries in order to facilitate the work of the court. The Department of Investigation
and Intelligence and the Department of Technology and Forensics are part of the ACU. Covert
techniques fall under its responsibility. A group of undercover agents disguise themselves
particularly as taxi drivers, small ice-cream sellers, or beggars in order to be as close as possible
to suspects. In this connection, it is noted that the suspects disguise themselves as well. For
instance, they change their clothes when they leave home, and get into another car to change
clothes again. In these cases, they change their transportation often as well from their locations totheir destinations. The official of this department usually convinces a person close to the suspect
to provide as much information as possible and to identify the suspect. Collecting and preserving
evidence is crucial to their activities. It is interesting to note that the Chairman, deputy
chairpersons of the Anti-Corruption Unit and some officials of ACUs are legally entitled to thestatus of judicial police officials in order to perform their duties in accordance with theprovisions in the Code of Criminal Procedure (Article 23).
(iii) Search and seizure
In cases where there is some clear evidence of a corruption offence, the ACU (under Article27) can:x

Check and put under observation the bank accounts or other accounts which aredescribed to be the same as bank accounts.

x

Check and order the provision or copying of authentic documents or individual
documents, or all bank, financial and commercial documents.

x

Monitor, oversee, eavesdrop, record sound, take photos, and engage in wiretapping.

x

Check documents and documents stored on electronic systemsx

Conduct operations aimed at collecting real evidence.
The seizure shall be implemented in accordance with the Code of Criminal Procedure.

2.

Procedure(i) Role of the prosecutor
There are no special prosecutors, courts or judges for corruption cases. Investigations areoverseen by the ACU in partnership with the police and other law-enforcement agencies. The
Royal Prosecutor leads and coordinates the operations of all judicial police agents and judicial- 62 -

police officers within his territorial jurisdiction. The Royal Prosecutor shall exercise all authority
designated in this code and delegate it to the judicial police officers for investigative action. He
may visit the investigation site and give useful instructions to the judicial police officers. He caninspect a judicial police unit at any time. He can participate in interviews and can examine
witnesses.
(ii) Preparation for trial by the prosecutor
After the arrest, the prosecutor exercises his power as stated in the Code of Criminal
Procedure (Article 25).
B. Human Resources
1. How to Recruit
The officials of the Anti-corruption Unit are appointed, transferred or assigned to work for
the Unit and the contractual officials. These officials have to follow the provisions of the law andlegal norms in force. The Chairperson of the Anti-Corruption Unit can recruit local orinternational experts, specialists or researchers, on a voluntary or contractual basis, to provide
technical expertise on anti-corruption (Article 14).
2. Training Mechanism and Curricula for Investigation(i) Curricula
The curricula focus mostly on all offences related to corruption prescribed in the Criminal
Code and the power of investigation of the ACU stated in the Code of Criminal Procedure. For
instance, from 1st January to May 2012, the ACU held a seminar on the dissemination of theAnti-Corruption Law at 18 universities and 9 districts. 10,110 participants attended the seminars.
Furthermore, from 7 November to 16 December 2011, the ACU conducted a nationwide
campaign on Anti-Corruption Law dissemination. There were 9,967 officers from relevant
ministries and institutions who attended the seminar. National Anti-Corruption Day in Cambodia
is 9 December. In 2011, the ACU, with support from DANIDA and Pact Cambodia, organized apublic concert to raise public awareness on the negative effects and prevention of corruption.
III.

CONCLUSION

To sum up, Cambodia is ready to combat corruption offences. The Anti-Corruption Law
promulgated on 17 April 2010 contains fundamental rules used in corruption cases. Furthermore,
TECHO Operation is an additional measure to strengthen the ability in fighting corruption in
Cambodia. With all mentioned measures, mechanisms, procedures and human resources, we are
optimistic that the corruption offences will be steadily reduced.

- 63 -

ENHANCING INVESTIGATIVE ABILITY IN CORRUPTION CASES
Hou Sthabna*

I. OVERVIEW
Corruption is a complex social, political and economic phenomenon that affects all countries.
Corruption undermines democratic institutions, slows economic development and contributes togovernmental instability. Corruption takes place in all human societies and in all walks of life.
Cambodia is also experiencing this social phenomenon. The Royal Government of
Cambodia (RGC) does not turn a blind eye to this problem. The RGC is strongly committed tofighting corruption, formulating a separate anti-corruption law, and empowering an independentanti-corruption mechanism.
II. BACKGROUNDThe Royal Government of Cambodia has paid great attention to combating corruption since
the UN-organized General Elections in 1993. In 1992, Cambodia adopted the Criminal Law Act
in which three of its articles were related to corruption, namely Embezzlement, Acceptance of
Bribery and Proffering of Bribes. In 1999, an anti-corruption mechanism was first established in
Cambodia. It was called the Anti-Corruption Activities Unit. In 2006, the RGC established theAnti-Corruption Unit, ACU.
On 17 April 2010, the Anti-Corruption Law was promulgated by the King. The new law
required the establishment of an Anti-Corruption Council and Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU).
Since its creation, the ACU has been implementing three intertwined approaches: Education andPrevention, Law Enforcement, and International Cooperation.
In its effort to combat corruption, the RGC has carried out the Rectangular Strategy since thefirst to the third mandate of the fifth legislation, focusing on multi-sectorial reforms for the sakeof social development and justice. The RGC continues to view fighting corruption as a priority,
as mentioned in the Rectangular Strategy where Good Governance is the core element andfighting corruption is the first angle.
III.

ENHANCING INVESTIGATIVE ABILITY IN CORRUPTION CASES

A. Agencies and Organizations Responsible for Investigating Corruption Cases
Article 22, “Officials Competent to Investigate Corruption Offences”, of the Anti-Corruption
Law stipulates that:*Technicality and Forensic Dept., Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU), Cambodia.

- 64 -

-The President, Vice Presidents and officials of the Anti-Corruption Unit who areappointed as judicial police officers are empowered to investigate corruption
offences as stipulated in this Law and those in the Penal Code.
Other units that are aware of corruption offences as stipulated in the AntiCorruption Law and those stated in the Penal Code shall make corruption
complaints to the ACU or its branch offices in the municipalities or provinces.

B. The Outline of Investigative Procedures
Article 25, “ACU’s Investigative Authority”, of the Anti-Corruption Law stipulates that:

-

-

-

The ACU officials who are appointed as judicial police officers shall carry out
investigation of corruption offences in compliance with the provisions of the Codeof Criminal Procedure and the provisions in this Law.
Officials of the Anti-Corruption Unit who are appointed as judicial police officers
take charge of investigating corruption offences. If, during the investigation of acorruption offence, a different offence is found with facts related to the offence
being investigated by the Anti-Corruption Unit, officials of Anti-Corruption Unit
can continue the investigation of the offence to the end of the proceedings.
The Anti-Corruption Unit is not entitled to launch its own investigation into any
offence except corruption offences, unless there is a court order.
The court is entitled to issue an order to the Anti-Corruption Unit to undertake
forensic inquiries in order to facilitate the court’s judgement.
In the framework of these investigations and contradictory to Article 85(Authority of Judicial Police Officers in Enquiry of Flagrante Delicto Cases),
Article 91 (Searches), Article 94 (Order to Appear in Inquiry of Flagrante Delicto
Cases) and the Article 114 (Order to Appear in Preliminary Investigation) of thePenal Procedure Code, the President or an officially assigned representative of the
ACU has the duty to lead, coordinate and control the mission of those officers onbehalf of the prosecutor until a suspect is arrested.
After the arrest, the prosecutor shall exercise his/her power as stated in theprovisions of the Penal Procedure Code.
At the end of each investigation, the Anti-Corruption Unit shall submit all facts tothe prosecutor for further action in conformity with the provisions of the Penal
Procedure Code.

C. Agencies and Organizations Responsible for Interrogating
Paragraphs 1, 3, and 4 of Article 72, “Police Record”, of the Penal Procedure Code stipulate
that:

-

Every complaint received by judicial police officers requires the establishment of awritten record.
The record of the complaint shall mention the following:- 65 -

-x

The names and status of the judicial police officersx

The units of the judicial police officers andx

The date.

Each page shall be signed by a judicial police officer and by the complainant.

Currently, the ACU has a total of 90 judicial police officers. Article 23 of the Anti-Corruption
Law, “Appointment of Anti-corruption Unit officials as judicial police”, stipulates that:-

The President and Vice Presidents of the Anti-Corruption Unit are legally entitled
to status as judicial police officers in order to perform their duties.
Officials of the Anti-Corruption Unit may be entitled to status as judicial police
officers pursuant to the provisions stated in the Penal Procedure Code.
The ACU President takes charge of preparing the list of the ACU officials who areentitled to status as judicial police officers through Prakas of the Minister of Justice.

D. Specific Methods for Good Interrogation-

If intelligence is working well, it is best to collect all relevant documents for
accusation as much as possible before making the decision to open an investigation.
Prepare questions beforehand for interrogating witnesses or suspects.
Get all related documents and evidence ready before an interrogation.
Never ask open questions.
Use no violent means to receive answers from witnesses or suspects.

E. Importance of Confessions of Suspects in Investigation as Evidence at Trial-

Once the suspect provides a confession during the investigation process, the judicial
police shall seek more evidence to verify the suspect’s confession before filing acourt case.
The suspect’s confession during the investigation stage of the judicial police can berevealed in front of the judge for considering the reduction of penalty.

F. Outline of Systems to Facilitate Witness Cooperation
Paragraphs 7 and 8 of Article 13, “Duties of Anti-corruption Unit”, of the Anti-Corruption
Law stipulate that the ACU has the duties to:-

Keep absolute confidentiality to protect sources of corruption-related information
Take necessary measures to keep corruption whistleblowers secured.

- 66 -

The Anti-Corruption Unit can meet and talk to complainants or whistleblowers at theirlocation or talk to them on the phone in the event that they find it uncomfortable to come to the
ACU compound.
G. Outline of Searches and Confiscations
1. Searches-

Paragraph 5 of Article 25, “Investigative Authority of Anti-corruption Unit”, stipulates
that:
x

2.

In the framework of these investigations and contradictory to Article 85(Authority of Judicial Police Officers in Enquiry of Flagrante Delicto Cases),
Article 91 (Searches), Article 94 (Order to Appear in Inquiry of Flagrante
Delicto Cases) and the Article 114 (Order to Appear in Preliminary
Investigation) of the Penal Procedure Code, the President or an officiallyassigned representative of the ACU has the duty to lead, coordinate andcontrol the mission of those officers on behalf of the prosecutor until asuspect is arrested.

Confiscation--

Article 48, “Confiscation”, of the Anti-Corruption Law stipulates that:x When a person is found guilty of corruption, the court shall confiscate all
his/her corruption proceeds including property, material, and instruments
which were the outcome of the corrupt act, and they shall become theproperty of the state.
x

If the aforementioned confiscated asset is transformed into an asset different
from its original nature, this transformed asset shall also become the subjectof confiscation at the place where it is located.

x

If the corruption proceeds produce other benefits or advantages, all of thesebenefits and advantages will also be confiscated.

x

If the corruption proceeds dissolve or lose value, the court may order asettlement of the original value of the proceeds.

Article 49, “Repatriation of the Proceeds of Corruption”, of the Anti-Corruption
Law states that:x In case asset and corruption proceeds are found and kept in foreign states, thecompetent authority of the Kingdom of Cambodia shall take measures toclaim that asset and [repatriate the] proceeds back to Cambodia throughmeans of international cooperation. The Kingdom of Cambodia shall also
cooperate with other countries that request the repatriation of corruption
proceeds that are kept in Cambodia.

- 67 -

H. The Outline of the Public Reporting and Complaint System-

The ACU publicly informs those who wish to file a corruption complaint or reportcorruption-related information. They can accordingly:x

Write a letter and place it in an ACU white box

xWrite a letter and post it to the ACU P.O Box by writing Box No. 626 or AntiCorruption Unit on the envelop without stamps

x

Send an electronic mail to complaint@acu.gov.kh

xVisit the ACU during the office hours at #54, Norodom Blvd, Sangkat Phsar
Thmei III, Khan Daun Penh, Phnom Penh orx

Call the ACU hotline at 1282I.

The Outline of Preparation for Trial by Prosecutors
Paragraphs 1 and 2 of Article 40, “Processing of Criminal Proceedings”, of the Penal
Procedure Code stipulate that:-

The Prosecutor shall consider the written complaint and protests that have been
received personally by him or submitted by judicial police officers.
The Prosecutor can decide to either hold a file without processing or to conduct
proceedings against the offenders. Before making the decision, the Prosecutor canconduct preliminary investigations or order supplemental investigations.
IV. CONCLUSION

Though Cambodia has enjoyed full peace for only a short time, the Royal Government of
Cambodia, under the clear-sighted leadership of Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen, hasmade remarkable progress in all fields, especially in enhancing Cambodia’s prestige in theinternational arena.
The RGC is strongly committed to strengthening good governance and fighting corruption.
Fighting corruption is a key to ensure equitable division of social resources and attracting foreign
investment. Cambodia continues to cooperate closely with the international community,
especially SEAPAC members, to combat corruption. Despite many challenges, the ACU continues
to work untiringly to promote integrity, transparency, accountability and prosperity in Cambodiansociety.

- 68 -