Police conducting a raid on a brothel suspected of harbouring at least one under-age sex worker had encountered a group of soldiers having “fun”, the official in charge of the operation said yesterday.

Three Vietnamese and three Cambod-ian sex workers were rescued from a brothel in Oddar Meanchey’s Anlong Veng district, and the owner, the widow of military officer, was arrested during the raid, provincial deputy police commissioner Na Neang said yesterday.

“We have not yet completed our task. We are still questioning the victims and suspects for detail,” she said, adding that one of the victims was suspected of being younger than 18.

Na Neang said a few military officials who frequented the brothel were surprised when police raided it, but said they were just having fun and caused no confrontation.

She said the owner of  the brothel, which was raided after a month-long investigation in collaboration with the rights group Agir Pour Les Femmes En Situation Precaire, had owned it for many years.

AEFSIP technical co-ordinator Sao Chhoeurth declined to comment on the case, saying he had yet to receive the report.

Bith Kimhong, director of the Anti-Human Trafficking and Juvenile Protection Department at the Ministry of Interior, said he had sent officials from his department to work with local authorities on the operation.

“We have not concluded the case yet, as we are still questioning to get more information,” Blith Kimhong said.