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Seven Westerners have been released on bail in Cambodia after they were arrested last month for allegedly posting photos on social media of themselves engaging in sexually suggestive dancing, a court official says.
The case's investigation had been completed and the seven were freed on Wednesday — but no trial date has been set, Siem Reap province court spokesman Yim Srang said.
He said three other people remained in detention, but he did not know their names or nationalities.
The 10 arrested people — five from the United Kingdom, two from Canada, and one each from Norway, the Netherlands and New Zealand — were detained when police raided a commercially-organised party at a rented villa in Siem Reap and found people dancing at a event described as a pub crawl.
Police who conducted the raid originally detained almost 90 people, and it was unclear why they singled out 10 to remain in custody and be charged.
Police said those caught in the raid had been "dancing pornographically" and offended Cambodian standards of morality. They face up to a year in jail if convicted.
Three still detained 'organised event'
Journalist Ananth Baliga — who works for the Phnom Penh Post newspaper and whose website was first to report the release — said on Twitter the three still detained were from the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Norway.
He did not identify them by name, but said they were considered the organisers of the event.
One of the group's lawyers, Ouch Sopheaktra, said he filed for bail on Monday for the seven who were released, judging that their alleged offences were minor.
He said he had not yet decided to appeal for bail for the other three because their cases were "a bit more complicated" and he needed more time to consider their situation.
He did not explain further, but there has been speculation that some of the detainees would not seek bail in the hope that would expedite their cases and not leave them trapped in Cambodia for an extended period awaiting trial.
'It's just one mistake'
Last week, one of the detainees' lawyers, Sourng Sophea, said some of the photos posted by his clients showed them at a party, some drinking by a swimming pool and some of the women in bikinis — but none showed them having sex or exposing themselves.
He said, according to the law, they should be deported or have their visas cancelled, but should not be held in pre-trial detention.
In a brief video of the detainees made last week, one unidentified man apologised for any offence he might have caused.
Declaring he had lived in Cambodia for two years, he said: "I respect the culture, I help Cambodian children, I help Cambodian families.
"I don't want to make any problems with Cambodia.
"It's just one mistake … I'm sorry."
Asked by an off-camera interviewer if they wanted to go back to their own countries, several replied "yes" while all nodded their heads.
AP
Topics: laws, pornography, police, offbeat, cambodia, new-zealand, netherlands, norway, canada, united-kingdom