Cambodian Prisons Face Alarming Overcrowding Due to Drug Offenses and Scams

Prison inmate numbers across Cambodia have reached an “alarming rate” due to stricter law enforcement targeting drug-related offenses, online scams, youth gangs, and other crimes, leading to overcrowding that a prison top official said could result in psychological stress and security concerns. In Cambodia, a prison warden supervises 20 to 25 inmates compared to only three inmates per officer in South Korea, said Chhorn Sanat, director-general of the General Department of Prisons of the Interior Ministry, on July 4. The prison population has increased steadily over the months, Sanat said, noting that total inmate numbers stood at 67,677 inmates, including 4,530 women, 3,047 juveniles, and 7,434 foreign nationals as of June 30, 2026. Drug-related offenses account for 51% of inmates, while 2,554 are detained in online scam cases and 3,010 for youth gang-related offenses. “In the past six months alone, the prison population has increased by nearly 5,000 people,” Sanat said. “By the end of 2028, the number of inmates could reach as many as 85,000.” He said overcrowding made it difficult to separate detainees by offense, security classification, and health status in line with legal standards, while creating security risks inside prisons. It has also required prison officers to be responsible for 20 to 25 inmates, “well above the recommended six to 10,” while each inmate has “only 1.05 square meters of living space” compared to the United Nations’ minimum standard of 3.4 square meters. “Housing large numbers of inmates in the same cell has created emotional and psychological pressure,” Sanat said, adding that some prisoners have expressed suicidal thoughts, attempted to escape, or considered prison riots. Meanwhile, Am Sam Ath, operations director of rights group Licadho, said expanding prison facilities alone failed to address the chronic overcrowding situation. Instead, he said authorities should strengthen efforts to prevent drug-related crimes, while courts limit sending people to pretrial detention, expand community service sentences, and increase conditional release for eligible inmates. Sam Ath also recommended releasing activists detained for exercising constitutionally protected freedoms. “We continue to see widespread use of pretrial detention which contributes significantly to overcrowding,” he said. “Courts should carefully assess whether defendants can remain outside prison under judicial supervision.” Interior Ministry spokesperson Touch Sokhak did not respond to CamboJA News at the time of publication.