An officer in the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces was charged with fraud at the Phnom Penh Municipal Court yesterday after allegedly taking payments in return for promises of government jobs and failing to deliver, according to court clerk Muong Sokha.

Colonel Ouk Sithorn, 39, is accused of accepting a total of $27,000 from 10 different victims, and could face up to three years in prison if convicted, Sokha added.

Penal police officer Phan Phany said Sithorn’s arrest on Saturday was based on complaints from at least 10 people who claimed to have paid between $2,000 and $5,000 each in 2014 in exchange for government work.

“But after collecting the money from the victims, he did not find jobs for them . . . And when victims demanded their money back, he did not return them,” Phany added.