About 2,000 kilograms of Kran-houng luxury timber worth tens of thousands of dollars and a Toyota Camry car were seized by authorities in Oddar Meanchey province’s Anlong Veng district on Wednesday, military police said yesterday.

Ngoun Tirith, commander of Anlong Veng district military police, said the luxury timber was seized in a house raid led by the provincial prosecutor in Trapaing Tav commune.

“But the offenders and house’s owner were not arrested, because they had successfully escaped from the scene,” Tirith said. “It seemed that they were aware about the police’s activity in advance,” he added.

Police have yet to identify the suspects and were still searching for them, Tirith said.

According to the military police commander, illegal logging in Anlong Veng district is rampant, and authorities undertake a raid and confiscation exercise at least once a month.

The luxury wood and the car were impounded at the provincial forest department for further investigation.

To contact the reporter on this story: Buth Reaksmey Kongkea at [email protected]