Two foreigners were let off with a warning yesterday after flying a camera-equipped drone near Prime Minister Hun Sen’s house in central Phnom Penh.

American Todd Brown, 39, and French national Gilles Sainsily, 35, were arrested by officers in front of Wat Lanka at about 10am, questioned and released just after 5pm, said Phnom Penh municipal deputy police chief Sim Vuthy.

Vuthy said the pair wasn’t charged, but were warned to get prior approval before operating unmanned aerial vehicles in the city.

City Hall vowed to crack down on unapproved drone flights after a German tourist flew a UAV near the Royal Palace in February, which was spotted by the Queen Mother during her morning exercise routine.

Brown said the pair made a bad decision.

“We were flying the drone in order to shoot some of Wat Lanka and Independence Monument , and it just obviously happened to be close to Hun Sen’s house, so they assumed we were shooting Hun Sen’s house, which we were not. I understand why they were concerned,” he said.