The Siem Reap Provincial Court on Saturday placed six Chinese men in pre-trial detention at provincial prison for circulating indecent photographs in Siem Reap province.

Provincial court spokesman Ream Chan Mony said on Sunday that the six men were apprehended on Thursday in Svay Dangkum commune’s Sala Kanseng village in Siem Reap town.

The court then questioned, charged and put them in provincial prison for distributing indecent photos and other items online.

Provincial police investigating and procedure bureau chief Touch Sokun identified the six men as Wu Song, 29; Li Chao, 24; Li Hang, 26; Li Shaojie, 26; Gong Lei, 33; and Li Longjie, 27. They are alleged to have rented a villa in

Sala Kanseng village for several months to run their operation.

Following a thorough investigation by the police, immigrant police raided the villa at 4pm on Thursday, where the six men were arrested and five laptops, 30 mobile phones and other items were confiscated.

Sokun said the crackdown was a joint operation involving provincial deputy police chief in charge of immigration Chea Kimsan and provincial deputy prosecutor Chuon Sopanha.

Swift News reported that the six men had been hired to run the online operation out of the villa, but they did not know whom they worked for. The owner of the villa was not identified.

In March, 163 Chinese nationals, including 40 women, were arrested in the same commune following a three-week investigation into their online gaming operation. Some 150 computers were seized.

Following interrogation by provincial police, the Ministry of Interior’s General Department of Immigration decided to deport them to China early in April.