Municipal police yesterday arrested 50 people, including 12 women, in an anti-drug raid at a nightclub in Chamkar Mon district.

Lieutenant General Sar Thet, Phnom Penh police chief, led the early morning raid on Miami nightclub in Boeng Keng Kang 1 commune.

General Meas Vyrith, National Authority for Combating Drugs secretary-general, said the raid was carried out after police gathered sufficient proof that it was a drug den.

“Police officers arrested around 50, people including 12 women and Chinese nationals, most of whom were youths suspected to be drug users,” he said. “Police also seized drugs from the nightclub during the raid.”

Gen Vyrith said the amount of drugs seized had yet to be determined.

“Now, police officers are testing the suspects’ for drug use,” he said, noting that this is the second drug bust at a nightclub following the raid on Rock Nightclub.

Lt Gen Thet declined to comment yesterday and General Mok Chito, deputy national police, could not be reached for comment

Colonel Yin San, district police chief, also declined to comment yesterday.

Ev Phearith, municipal anti-drug bureau chief, said he had joined the raid but was not directly involved with the arrests.

In February, Phnom Penh police officials raided the Rock Nightclub and shuttered the establishment which had been operating for about a decade.

During the raid, police arrested 311 people and confiscated more than 50 kilograms of drugs, including methamphetamine.

• Tags: drug, Drug arrest, drug use, nightclub, Rock Centre nightclub, Rock Entertainment Centre, Rock nightclub