The Ministry of Interior has condemned a recent investigative report by Jacob Sims, a U.S. crime researcher and visiting fellow at Harvard University’s Asia Center, on Monday accusing it of being “politically motivated and baseless”.
The report, titled “Policies and Patterns: State-Abetted Transnational Crime in Cambodia as a Global Security Threat”, alleged that senior Cambodian officials, including Interior Minister Sar Sokha, have ties to the country’s vast online scam industry.
Released on May 16, it claimed that the ruling Cambodian People’s Party enabled a multibillion-dollar transnational criminal network built on human trafficking, cyber fraud, and money laundering—activities it says are “protected by powerful state actors”.
Funded in part by the U.S. government, the report is based on open-source investigations, literature reviews, and more than 50 interviews with diplomats, civil society leaders, academics, and journalists.
Dismissing the report as “unprofessional and unsubstantiated”, the ministry accused Sims of smearing high-ranking officials without credible evidence. It said the claims serve the political agenda of extremist opposition groups and mislead both national and international audiences.
“This is nothing new, and also no different from previous reports that the writers thought up and fabricated facts against their will and profession as the researchers,” it stated. “This report is ill intended to serve a political agenda of the national and international extreme opposition syndicates.”
The ministry affirmed that strict measures are in place to combat online scams, human trafficking, and money laundering.
Last week, Cambodian authorities raided an online scam compound in Poipet, detaining around 30 Japanese nationals suspected of involvement in online fraud.
The ministry acknowledged that transnational crimes are difficult to eradicate due to global instability, including armed conflicts, economic downturns, geopolitical rivalries, and impacts of climate change. It said criminals are increasingly using advanced technologies that make enforcement more complex, and require international cooperation and high-tech tools.
The statement also denied allegations that Interior Minister Sar Sokha was “involved in or benefitted from Jinbei Casino”, which Sims’ report identified as a hub for scam operations.
The ministry clarified that neither Sokha nor his family are shareholders or beneficiaries of Jinbei Casino, which it said is “legally owned by Prince Group Holdings under CEO Chen Zhi”, and operates in accordance with Cambodian law.
Chou Bun Eng, Vice President of the National Committee for Counter Trafficking, also rejected the report, and expressed disappointment at being accused of enabling criminal networks.
“I was shocked and disheartened,” she said. “My work over the past decade to coordinate national and international efforts to fight human trafficking has been undermined by this exaggerated and misleading report.”
She questioned Sims’ motives, claiming the report “not only damaged her personal reputation but also sought to unjustly discredit Cambodia on the international stage”.
Responding to CamboJA News via email, Sims said the findings are based on open-source intelligence (OSINT), a thorough review of scholarly literature on Cambodia’s political economy, and over 50 expert interviews, therefore “not political bias”.
But, “it is worth noting that citing ‘extremist opposition groups’ for any critical content has been a common refrain from the government over the years,” he said. “While my report is generating some attention, this central claim is not novel, unsubstantiated, or even that controversial within the scholarly or policy community.”
He cited Dr. Neil Loughlin’s 2024 article to show Sar Sokha’s earlier involvement in Jinbei Investment Company Ltd, a linkage originally identified by Jack Davies and suggested in his 2020 exposé as likely connected to Prince’s Jinbei Casino in Sihanoukville. This connection hasn’t previously been disputed. He believes the reason it is being disputed now is not because it is untrue, but because it is “politically inconvenient” for the government.
Sims said the government’s core grievance appears to stem from the report’s conclusion that the scam economy operates as a “vertically-integrated criminal industry with ties to top government officials and significant state protection”.
His report maps 63 documented mechanisms of state support for the industry and categorizes the government’s response into three key strategies — denial of the issue’s scale, efforts to cover up and shield perpetrators, and repression of those who speak out, including journalists, civil society, and survivors.
Licadho operations director Am Sam Ath considered the government’s rejection of the reports as a right to interpretation and defense.
However, he noted that despite the government’s commitment to combating online fraud, such crimes continue to be reported in Cambodia by the international community, including the United Nations.
He urged authorities to strengthen law enforcement, eliminate corruption, enhance cooperation with regional and global partners, and train more skilled officers to address the complex and evolving nature of transnational online scams.
