The Siem Reap Provincial Court on Saturday charged and placed in pretrial detention a man accused of illegally transporting 66 logs of luxury rosewood, a forestry official said yesterday.

According to Chi Kraeng district Forestry Administration officer Sou Phallar, Tong Mol, 36, of Oddar Meanchey province, was allegedly transporting the 760 kilograms of timber in a Toyota Vigo pickup truck from Preah Vihear province to Kampong Cham province, but was intercepted in Chi Kraeng.

“We were tipped off that the car was transporting rosewood mixed in with furniture,” Phallar said. “We checked it out and found the rosewood. The driver was arrested too.”

The car and rosewood were taken to the Chi Kraeng Forestry Administration office where the driver was questioned before being sent to court.

“He confessed that he was employed to transport the rosewood by a Vietnamese man ... We don’t know whether the rosewood was heading to Vietnam or not,” Phallar said.

The driver was sent to court and charged with collecting and transporting rosewood, and detained at the provincial prison, he added.