A Cambodian court charged a Dutch national today with sexually abusing
seven boys aged under 15 and taking pornographic photographs of them, a
court prosecutor said.
Rene Paul Martin Aubel, 48, was arrested last week after police raided his rented room and alleged they found him with two naked 13-yearold boys.
"He was charged this morning on two counts: committing debauchery against boys and taking pornographic photographs," Phnom Penh municipal court deputy prosecutor Ngeth Sarath said.
Debauchery is the legal term for paedophilia in Cambodia.
Three of the seven boys Aubel is charged with abusing gave evidence in court, the prosecutor said. Police seized 52 explicit photographs during their raid, he said.
According to Action Pour les Enfants (Action for Children), which originally reported the case to police, Aubel had visited Cambodia nine times over the past five or six years.
The group has been involved in several recent arrests of foreigners on similar charges.
Cambodia has developed a reputation as a haven for foreign paedophiles and sex offenders as it emerges from years of war. — AFP
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