Cambodia Cuts Scumbags Loose

Scumbag 1

This is  Alexander Trofimov and he's a scumbag.

Trofimov was convicted in Cambodia of sex crimes against 17 underage girls- the youngest who was just six- and sentenced to ten years imprisonment. It's believed that Trofimov abused numerous other youngsters before his conviction.

During his time in prison the Russian enjoyed his own cell (for money talks in Cambodia). And according to an investigator for human rights group Licadho, he was, despite his supposed confinement, often allowed out for nights on the town.

On Tuesday Trifimov was given a royal pardon. This was despite him failing to meet the requirement that a prisoner must first serve at least two-thirds of their sentence before being freed. One official claimed that Trifimov was pardoned because "he had corrected himself during the time he served in prison."

How exactly poorly-educated Cambodian prison officials with no expertise in sexual predators would know that this filthy Russian was 'corrected' was not explained. Of course, we are expected to believe that Trifimov's huge wealth and his connections had nothing to do with the pardon.

Scumbag 2

This is Alexander Watrin and he too is a scumbag.

Watrin preys on vulnerable and impoverished young boys. In 2006 he was convicted of numerous child-sex offences and sentenced to ten years.

In 2009 the Cambodian Court of Appeal reduced Watrin's sentence by three years. On Tuesday he too walked free; his Royal pardon shaved another year off the original sentence.

So where are these scumbags now? Deported back to their home countries- Russia and Germany, surely?

Disgracefully, no. They remain free in Cambodia, somewhere.


That's despite the obvious threat they hold for Cambodian children. And that's despite the fact that the Russian government has requested that Trifimov be extradited to face child-sex charges in Russia. That request has so far been refused by the Cambodia's rulers.

It would seem, then, that Trifimov and Watrin aren't the only scumbags to feature in these sorry episodes.