Ratanakkiri's prison director has been moved to a new post after 20 years on the job.

In a ceremony held on Thursday, the Ministry of Interior’s General Department of Prisons officially replaced Ngin Nel, transferring him to the Ministry of Interior, where he will serve as deputy chief of the Correctional Department, said Sorn Keo, a department spokesman.

Tin Sovanny, who formerly served in the Ministry of Interior, will step in as Ratanakkiri’s new provincial prison chief, Phen Dyna, the province’s deputy police chief, told the Post.

Ministry officials did not provide a reason for Nel’s transfer, but Dyna pointed out that five prisoners escaped from the facility in November.

The four escapees, who remain on the loose, were all awaiting trial on charges ranging from robbery to murder.

When reached yesterday, the provincial prison deputy chief Chhom Srey Pich pointed out that Nel was not in the province at the time the inmates escaped.