More than 20 deputy provincial police chiefs in Prey Veng province have moved to defend their boss from allegations of selling promotions aired by an apparent disgruntled insider on Facebook.

In a letter dated January 4, the deputies refuted accusations by Facebook user Sok Raksa, who wrote that Prey Veng provincial police chief Sreng Chea had taken bribes for advancements, mismanaged his staff and told his subordinates not to respect district police chiefs.

“We would like to reject the accusations totally and call for the individual to come out and change themselves like the slogan: take the bath, clear yourself, look into mirror, and cure yourself,” the letter says.

Deputy police chief Dim Yarom said the Sok Raksa account, which features a picture of a woman, was a fake profile created to discredit the chief.

“Since we have this new leader, there have been many improvements in the police department,” Yarom said of the three-year tenure of Chea, a relative by marriage to Interior Minister Sar Kheng.

“We actually have an idea who [Sok Raksa] is, but I cannot name them without evidence.”