Twenty-three Chinese nationals were deported to China yesterday, following their arrest in Phnom Penh alongside 68 Taiwanese individuals earlier this month on suspicion of phone-based extortion, said Chhay Sinarith, director of the Ministry of Interior’ Internal Security Police Department.

The 23 alleged blackmailers left on a special flight after Immigration Department director Pin Piseth and a Chinese government representative met on Wednesday, Sinarith said.

The Taiwanese suspects were still detained at the Department of Immigration, due to Cambodia’s policy of only cooperating with the Chinese government, and not the Taiwanese, he said.

“The Cambodian government has a One China Policy stance, so we exchanged documents on the 91 people only with Chinese officials,” he said.

“The 68 Taiwanese people will be deported to Taipei on a normal flight whenever they are able to buy their own tickets.”

He added that all 91 foreign nationals would be banned from entering Cambodia again.

To contact the reporter on this story: Chhay Channyda at [email protected]