Cambodia Trafficking Victim Beaten: Court Rules on Compensation Claim After Prosecutor Leaked Video
In August 2022, a district prosecutor's office in Asia cracked a human trafficking case involving victims lured to Dubai with promises of high-paying "typing jobs" that could earn six figures in six months. Dozens of people were recruited.
In reality, the victims had their movements controlled, were forced to run telecom scams, and were subjected to electric shock abuse. Authorities estimated that between May and July 2022, at least 50 foreign nationals fell victim to this scheme.
During the investigation, a 2-minute video was found on a confiscated phone showing a man with blonde hair wearing a white shirt being brutally beaten with an electric shock baton, screaming and begging for mercy on his knees.
The footage was horrific. The prosecutor's office, in an effort to warn citizens about overseas job scams, released a press statement and the video to the media on August 9, 2022.
The man being abused with the electric baton was later identified as "Pan," a trafficking victim who had been lured to Cambodia. Pan paid a ransom and returned to his home country. He then filed a lawsuit, claiming the prosecutor's office failed to anonymize the video, exposing his identity and causing the scam syndicate to intensify his imprisonment and torture. After returning home, he was diagnosed with PTSD.
With support from civil rights and human rights organizations, Pan filed a state compensation lawsuit against the prosecutor's office.
Pan argued that the prosecutor's office's press release and video led to him being beaten more severely. Civil groups rallied in support of his compensation claim. A court hearing was held, and the judge ruled that the prosecutor's office's press release and video did not violate investigation confidentiality regulations.
Video Led to Alleged Escalated Abuse — Civil Groups Seek Compensation
An oversight body investigated and concluded that the prosecutor's office had not verified the video's authenticity before release, failed to properly anonymize the victim, violated investigation confidentiality rules, and did not provide counseling or assistance to the victim. The prosecutor's office was formally reprimanded.
However, the court hearing the compensation case ruled that the prosecutor's office's press release and video were for public interest purposes — warning society — and did not violate confidentiality regulations. Furthermore, based on evidence from the prosecutor's office, Pan had already been abused by the scam syndicate before the press release. There was no proof the syndicate escalated violence because of the news report, and a direct causal link could not be established. The court dismissed Pan's compensation claim, though the ruling can be appealed.
Civil rights organizations held a press conference outside the courthouse, chanting: "Prosecutor leaked evidence, the state harmed a life." Pan's attorney stated that seeking compensation of over $20,000, calculated at a rate of approximately $150 per day from the date of the press release to his release, was reasonable. Despite the prosecutor's office admitting to releasing the photos and the oversight body issuing a reprimand, Pan was denied compensation. An appeal was planned.
