For a change the usual source of this story is not Cambodia Daily but the Khmer language Koh Santepheap Newspaper ( March 6, 2007). Apparently, in a reversal of the usual role for traffic police, a traffic policeman was robbed of his motorcycle:
A traffic cop from Phnom Penh city was robbed at gunpoint by 4 thieves who took away his motorcycle. The robbery took place in the middle of traffic when the cop was getting out of work, and he was about to return home. The daring robbery took place in front of the Than pagoda located along the Norodom Boulevard, in Sangkat Boeng Keng Kang 1, Khan Chamcar Mon. The incident occurred at 4:15 AM of 04 March 2007.
According to an anonymous source, the name of the robbed cop is Chan Dara, he is 40-year-old and lives in Takhmao district, Kandal province. The motorcycle robbed was a silver C90 model, bearing the license plate 1986 PP 1. The cop was returning home, he was traveling on the Norodom Boulevard. When he arrived in front of the Than pagoda, two men on a black motorcycle forced him to stop and they pulled a gun to point at him, demanding to take his motorcycle. At the same time, another group of 2 thieves on another black motorcycle threatened the cop and told him not to yell.
When Chan Dara was robbed, he was still wearing his police uniform, however, he was wearing a civilian shirt on top of the uniform shirt. It was probably because of this that the robbers did not know they were robbing a cop.
Now what was the policeman doing at this time of morning (night) and why was security poor on one of the most important stretches of tarmac in Phnom Penh?
