By Phann Ana

The Cambodia Daily, May 04, 2010

Juvenile protection police in Preah Sihanouk province on Friday arrested an American man for allegedly having sex with underage boys and possessing child pornography, police and an anti-pedophile activist said yesterday.

Prior to Friday’s arrst, police conducted interviews with four street youths aged between 15 and 17 years who said Alan Arthur PERRY, 57, routinely had sex with them, paying $5 to $20 per encounter, according to Be Sevanna, Chief of the provincial anti human trafficking and juvenile protection police bureau.

“We arrested him promptly based on information from the boys,” the police chief said. “Three computers containing child porn photos were also confiscated from his house.”

The 100 photographs discovered depicted naked children who did not appear to be any of the alleged victims, he said.

Mr. Sivanna said police arrested Mr. Perry at his rented house in Bei commune in Preah Sihanouk City after getting information from the youths.

Preah Sihanouk Provincial Court on Sunday charged Mr. Perry with child prostitution and possession of child pornography, ordering that he be provisionally detained in provincial prison a head of trial, Mr. Be Sivanna added.

Both charges carry possible prison terms of two to five years in jail. Possession of child pornography is also punishable by a fine of up to $2,500.

Seila Samleang, country director of the anti-pedophile NGO Action Pour Les Enfants, said yesterday that the arrest followed years of investigation into Mr. Perry’s activities in the province.

“We’d been following his activities for almost two years and found out that he liked to have sex with boys,” Mr. Samleang said.