By The Canadian Press

Drayton Valley woman arrested in Cambodia released on bail

Feb 8, 2018 | 7:42 AM

A young woman from Drayton Valley is among seven Westerners to be released on bail after they were arrested last month in Cambodia for allegedly posting photos on social media of themselves engaged in sexually suggestive dancing.

The 10 — from Canada, the U.K., Norway, the Netherlands and New Zealand — were arrested on Jan. 25 when police raided a party at a rented villa in the northwestern town of Siem Reap and found people “dancing pornographically” at an event organizers called a pub crawl.

Siem Reap is near the famous Angkor Wat temple complex.

A Cambodian court spokesman in Siem Reap said Thursday that the investigation of the case has been completed but no trial date has been set.  He said three other people remained in detention but he didn’t know their names or nationalities.

A release from the Cambodian National Police in January listed Eden Kazoleas, 20, from Drayton Valley and Jessica Drolet, 25, as the two Canadians detained along with eight men from other countries.

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Each of the accused faces up to a year in prison if convicted.

Lawyer 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.

According to the law, he said, they should be deported or have their visas cancelled, but should not have been held in pretrial detention.

A Cambodian prosecutor Samrith Sokhon previously said there is “enough evidence to prove that they violated the law and, therefore, they must face charges,” Sokhon said.

(The Associated Press)