“A City With No Smoke and No Sound” - Hun Sen's Cambodia - page 165

calade driven by Hun Chea, one of Hun Sen's nephews, who had been speeding at more
than 100 kilometers per hour. The force of the impact shattered Sam Sabo's scooter and
tore off the man's left arm and left leg. Hun Chea tried to drive away but the accident had
shredded a tire. Traffic police arrived at the scene, saw who was at the wheel of the flail-
ing vehicle, and fled in fear. Next a group of military police came, removed the SUV's
license plate, and, according to the Phnom Penh Post , comforted Hun Chea and told him
the accident wasn't his fault. Hun Chea walked away. Sabo was left bleeding to death in
the street. His family was later paid $4,000 after they promised not to file a complaint in
court. 34 In an irony that was blacker than the Cadillac's paintjob, Sabo was hit and killed
just meters from the Ministry of Justice.
Phnom Penh is no longer the wild city it was in the 1990s, but cases like Hun Chea's,
involving a volatile mix of alcohol, fast cars, and firearms, still surface regularly in the
news. Inefficient and corrupt law enforcement, combined with fear of blowback from the
top, prevents most of the cases being prosecuted properly. In December 2001 Hun Chea
and Hun To, another mega-rich nephew of the prime minister, allegedly took part in a
shootout at a Phnom Penh shopping center. The pair were jailed briefly but a city court
later released them, saying investigators had insufficient evidence. 35 Hun To is particu-
larly notorious for his violent antics. He lives in a lavish, palm-shaded villa on Mao Tse
Toung Boulevard, guarded around the clock by surly guards in black military pajamas.
The front yard is filled with expensive cars, including a black Lamborghini and a black
Rolls-Royce Phantom. In 2012 an Australian newspaper linked Hun To to drug traffick-
ing, a claim he vehemently denied. 36
Then there was the case of Nim Sophea (also known as Nim Pisey), another of Hun
Sen's nephews, who allegedly killed two people with an assault rifle in October 2003
after a drag-race through the city ended with one car slamming into a parked truck. 37
Sophea was arrested for murder, but the courts watered down the charge. In a closed
March 2004 trial hearing, he was found guilty on the lesser charge of “unintentional
murder” and sentenced to just three years in prison, half of which was suspended. 38
The next case to be heard that day was of a man accused of stealing 2,700 riels (about
$0.67). He was sentenced to four years in prison after his relatives were unable to pay
the $1,000 required for his release—a sad symbol of the double standards applied in the
city's courts. 39 Then, in August, Sophea walked free on appeal, having served just ten
months of his truncated sentence. 40 For years Hun Sen has made public calls for parents
and police to crack down on misbehaving rich kids—his own children have a reputation
for being well behaved—but his appeals have done little to stem reports of violent incid-
ents. 41 In August 2012 Sophea's brother Nim Chantana (aka Nim Pov) was suspected of
firing a gun in a restaurant in Koh Kong province. Police declined to investigate. 42