Kandal Senior Police Arrested Over Alleged Extortion of Chinese National
Authorities arrested Brigadier General Ul Bunna for allegedly threatening a Chinese man, a former cook with the US- and UK-sanctioned Prince Holding Group, into paying $32,271 over fake unpaid network fee claims.
Brigadier General Ul Bunna, 43, formerly Kandal Deputy Commissioner of Police, was arrested on the third day of Khmer New Year and sent to court for allegedly extorting a Chinese national, who worked as a cook with the US and UK-sanctioned Prince Holding Group.
The incident reportedly occurred at a construction site in Kampong Thkol Village, Sampov Poun City in Kandal on the evening of April 13, 2026.
Kiripost contacted Kandal provincial police chief Chhoeun Sochet but declined to comment, referring instead to their Facebook page which confirmed Bunna’s arrest on April 16. Bunna, who has been sent to court for legal action, is detained at Kandal prison.
According to Cambodia China Times, the arrest follows a complaint by Xiong Pan, 28, who alleged that he was forced by Bunna to pay $32,271 and sign a settlement agreement. Bunna allegedly used his former “Deputy Commissioner of Police” position to threaten Xiong with arrest and jail if he refused to pay, also warning that the construction site could be sealed off.
Xiong said Bunna and four other men entered the construction site where he was living on April 6. They identified themselves as local police officers and claimed that the construction site, “Prince Group Industrial Park”, owed “Metfone” $132,271 in unpaid network fees. They are said to have demanded Xiong to pay the debt on the company’s behalf.
Xiong, who worked as a cook at the park, which is under construction said the company manager had already left and that he had no connection to the alleged debt. But, fearing for his safety, he is alleged to have borrowed some money from his friends and handed over $32,271 in cash.
The park, linked to the Prince Group conglomerate, was sanctioned last year by the US and UK over alleged involvement in online scam and trafficking, defrauding people of billions of dollars worldwide. Group founder Chen Zhi was stripped of his Cambodian citizenship and deported to China in January.
Kiripost contacted the Metfone call centre for comment but was told by a staff member that the incident was not related to the company.
Bunna was previously demoted from Deputy Commissioner of Kandal Provincial Police to Brigadier General post to in 2024 for violating police regulations.
Since late last year, the government has deported more than 48,000 foreign nationals for alleged links to illicit online scam operations. Authorities have shut down more than 200 sites and detained over 800 alleged ringleaders beginning July 2025, as well as thousands of workers connected to scam networks, in raids in Sihanoukville and Phnom Penh.
Source: KiriPost
