Authorities: NY Man Drugged Child, Took Nude Photos

PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA (WPIX) - A New York man is facing charges that he drugged a 12-year-old girl in Cambodia and took pornographic pictures of her.

51-year-old Ronald A. Adams, 51, was arrested at his seaside home in Cambodia Friday after the girl's mother filed a complaint, said Deputy police chief of Preah Sihanouk Province Chor Heng. He was holding a passport indicating he was from New York.

Adams could be brought up on rape charges if testing confirms he physically abused the girl, said Provincial prosecutor You Tith Vattanak. The initial charges could lead to at least 10 years in jail.
Police said Adams, who runs a small restaurant, has lived 115 miles southwest of Phnom Penh for at least two years.

Cambodian law enforcement has recently been working harder to prevent foreigners from using their nation as a prime target for those seeking sex with minors. Lengthy prison terms have been doled out to foreigners caught in the act.