Businessmen Charged Over Mining Deal Fraud
The Phnom Penh Municipal Court has charged the Cambodian chairman of a local conglomerate and a Chinese business associate with fraud and using forged public documents, officials said Wednesday. Al Romny, 41, and Chinese national Chin Mongxin, 45, were arrested Saturday after an unknown complainant said they used forged documents, including faking Prime Minister Hun Sen’s signature, to cheat $810,000 out of a partner in a deal for a mining license in Mondolkiri province. ACICA Group, the company of which Mr. Romny is the chairman, on Wednesday attempted to distance itself from the case, saying he had been acting in a personal capacity in the mining deal. … It is alleged the two used forged documents purporting to be from the Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy, the Ministry of National Assembly-Senate Relations and Inspection and the prime minister himself in their fraud to secure a mining deal that would have been worth $6 million. … In response to questions sent to the company’s email address, an administrator said in a statement that it could not comment on the specifics of the case, but insisted that all its projects had genuine approval. …
Eang Mengleng and Simon Lewis
http://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/businessmen-charged-over-mining-deal-fraud-41261/
