British paedophile jailed for a year for abusing girl, 12

A British man has been jailed for a year by a Cambodian court for sexually abusing a 12-year-old girl. Cambodia is struggling to shed its bad reputation as a haven for sex tourists and paedophiles.

AFP - A Cambodian court on Friday sentenced a British man to one year in prison for sexually abusing a 12-year-old girl.

Judge Ke Sakhan of Phnom Penh Municipal Court convicted 51-year-old Gareth Ashley Corbett, arrested in the popular seaside town of Sihanoukville in July, of committing indecent acts.

He handed Corbett the one-year jail term and ordered him to pay a 1,000-dollar fine.

Corbett was arrested after the underage girl, who was also allegedly abused by a US man, told authorities that the Briton had sex with her.

A trial date for the US man, Scott Alan Hecker, 44, has not yet been set, court officials said.

Hecker was arrested for allegedly abusing the 12-year-old girl and another 14-year-old girl.

Cambodia has struggled to shed its reputation as a haven for paedophiles, putting dozens of foreigners in jail for child sex crimes or deporting them to face trial in their home countries since 2003.

Date created : 2009-12-25