REAKSMEY KONGKEA

Buth Reaksmey Kongkea   A 27-year-old-man who slit his wife’s throat in a rage of jealousy and cut off her head after she bled to death has been charged in the Phnom Penh Municipal Court for murder. Tuol Kork district deputy police chief Major Choum Bunnarin said the suspect, Phuong Ratha, a former security guard, put the victim’s head into a bag and threw it into a rubbish dump before fleeing to Bati district in Takeo province.   According to Maj Bunnarin, Ratha beheaded Ly Sreynuch, 23, a cleaner in Sunway Toul Kork City, flowing an argument in their rented room in Toul Kork district’s Boeng Keng I commune at about 9.30pm on May 27.   “The accused admitted committing the crime during police interrogations,” Maj Bunnarin said.   “Neighbours said the couple moved into the room in February and quarreled almost every night. We were told that Ratha was a jealous man and assaulted his wife often,” Maj Bunnarin said.   “But no one intervened because the c...

Buth Reaksmey Kongkea   As many as 120 judges and prosecutors from 25 provincial and municipal courts across the country yesterday attended a consultation workshop on ‘Developing guidelines for resolving wildlife trafficking cases’ as part of the efforts to reduce and combat wildlife trafficking in the Kingdom.   The workshop was co-organised by the Ministry of Justice and the Wildlife Conservation Society [WCS] and funded by the INL Fund USA at the Cambodiana Hotel in Phnom Penh.   Khieu Sophany, Undersecretary of State, Ministry of Justice, said that the Ministry will compile a handbook to support judges and prosecutors to handle wildlife trafficking cases.   The main purpose of the workshop was to gather additional opinions, knowledge, and successful experiences from the judges and prosecutors to draft comprehensive guidelines in handling the wildlife trafficking cases.   Sophanny said that the guidelines discussed in the workshop w...

    Buth Reaksmey Kongkea   Ear Channa, a former Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) activist, who plotted to overthrow the Hun Sen government in 2020, was arrested today on his arrival from Norway.   Major Nuon Sophath, the Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Crime Police Officer, told Khmer Times yesterday that Ear Channa, one of the outspoken opponents of Mr Hun Sen, was arrested on Monday at the Aeon I Mall in Chamkar Mon district’s Tonle Basac commune.   The accused, is a Norwegian-Cambodian citizen and a member of Cambodian Watch Council, a Norway-based non-governmental organization, he added.   Soon after his arrest, Phnom Penh Municipal Court charged Channa for plotting to overthrow the government of Cambodia. The court’s Investigating Judge Sin Sovannrath said that the accused was identified as Ear Channa, 41, and charged with ‘plotting’ under article 453 of the Criminal Code.   “The accused Ear Channa has committed act...

  Supreme Court   releases tycoon on bail due to poor health Buth Reaksmey Kongkea The Supreme Court yesterday released on bail accused tycoon Peth Nuon due to poor health, who was being detained in Kampot prison for a land scam where he embezzled nearly $500,000 from his business partner. Nuon, 47, General-Director of Chamroeun Agro-Industrial Development Import and Export Co Ltd, was sent to prison for allegedly selling more than two hectares of land in Kampot province in 2001 to real estate businessman and business partner Sin Boul, 38, property Nuon didn’t possess. Court Presiding Judge You Ottara stated yesterday that Nuon, who lives in Choam Chao III commune in Phnom Penh’s Por Senchey district, was charged with two counts of “Fraud with Aggravating Circumstances and Breach of Trust” under articles of 377, 378, 380, 391 and 392 of the Criminal Code. Nuon faces between two to five years in prison if convicted. Judge Ottara said that Nuon was arrested on Janua...

  Buth Reaksmey Kongkea TCN TV producer has been charged in court for airing news claiming that Kandal provincial authorities had received bribes from illegal gambling den owners to turn a blind eye.   Thai Bunrith, 51, had allegedly aired the allegations on Facebook live and was charged in Kandal provincial court yesterday.   Kandal Provincial Court Investigating Judge Ath Chandara said Bunrith was charged with “Inciting to Discriminate and Public Defamation” under Articles 494, 496, and 305 of the Criminal Code. If convicted, he faces a maximum two-year jail term.   Kandal Provincial police officer Major Leang Sameth said yesterday Bunrith’s broadcast on Facebook live via his TCN TV channel claimed that police and military police officers were complicit with illegal gambling operators in online gambling and lottery, and cock fighting in Kandal province.   He said that during Bunrith’s May 24 broadcast, Bunrith, who appeared drunk, openly insulted b...

  Buth Reaksmey Kongkea   Cambodian Mines Action Center (CMAC) deminers recently removed more than 3,000 Unexploded Ordinances (UXOs) from a sinking warship buried in the bottom of the Mekong River in Prey Veng province’s Peam Ro district. CMAC’s Director General Heng Ratana said yesterday that CMAC’s   de-miners started collecting and moving the bullets and UXOs from ammunition carrier buried inside the bottom of the River in Peam Ro district on May 15.   Ratana said that this was the third ammunition ship found in Peam Raing commune’s Boeng Ka-aek village, in Peam Ro district. Ratana noted that since salvage operations started CMAC’s deminers had moved more than 3,000 UXOs including more than 1,000 bullets weighing more than 10 tons from the ship.   He added that according to the CMAC's plan, salvage operations will last seven months, from May to November.   “According to the research of our Underwater Explosive Ordnance Disposal Committee, we...

  Buth Reaksmey Kongkea   Former president of Khmer Rise Party William Guang confessed before the Phnom Penh Municipal Court on May 26, 2022 that he masterminded the armed robbery at the residence of young tycoon Ean Sieu Mey.   Yesterday, the Phnom Penh Municipal Court began the trial in the case in which William Guang and six other people were accused of breaking in Mey’s residence at Villa V01 in Kork Chambok village, Choam Chao III in Por Senchey district on the night of December 19, 2021.   The court’s Presiding Judge Chhun Davy stated that the accused were identified as Sok Sovann Vathana Sabung alias William Guang, male, 44, his wife Sovann Srey Soryopor, 24; Or Ramorn, 33, Guang’s driver; Sovann Ranuth, 26; Guang’s personal assistant; Keth March, 26, a KRP accountant; and his girlfriend Thun Wathanak Boramey, 27, a car vendor and moneylender for Guang.   Judge Davy added that Guang was charged with three counts of ‘theft under aggravating circums...

Buth Reaksmey Kongkea  Five Taiwanese men and two Chinese men were Thursday charged and detained by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court in connection with drug possessing, producing and trafficking more than 70 kilograms of Ketamine, ice, and ecstasies committed in Phnom Penh and Kampong Speu province.                        According to the court’s document obtained yesterday by the Khmer Times, the five  Taiwanese nationals were identified as Tien Chan Fu, 28; Khou Po Wen, 28; Teng Kou Ching, 39; Lin Yi Chheng, 31;  and Cho Shih Jie, 42.   The two Chinese nationals were identified as Li Zhi, 27; and Peng Zheng Cheng, 31.   They all were charged by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court with “drug produce, possession, transport and trafficking” under the Articles 38 and 40 of Cambodian Law on Drug Control.                         ...

Buth Reaksmey Kongkea Several political parties have hailed Prime Minister Hun Sen’s initiative to issue identity cards to all Cambodians residing overseas so that they can vote or conduct business in Cambodia. Nhoeun Raden, spokesman for royalist Funcinpec party, said yesterday that it is very important that Cambodians overseas are eligible to vote. “This is very important because Cambodians living abroad can take part in the elections. We support the issuance of IDs for them,” he said. Ou Chanrath, vice president of Cambodia Reform Party, said that many Cambodians living overseas want to obtain ID cards. Yang Saing Koma, founder of the Grassroots Democratic Party (GDP), said that Cambodians working and living overseas should be eligible to vote. Saing Koma said that more than one million Cambodians, including migrant workers and labourers, are working and living in Asia. He said that they are the human resources that partake in developing the country. “I agree with ...

  Buth Reaksmey Kongkea   Anti-drugs police arrested four Chinese men yesterday and they were taken to the Municipal Court in Phnom Penh to be charged formally. They are accused of possessing drugs and drug-related material.   Court official Bun Sokha said the men were charged with drug possession and trafficking under Articles 38 and 40 of Cambodia’s drug control laws. National Police Deputy Chief in charge of anti-drug operations General Mak Chito said the first suspect was arrested last Friday.   He said based on his confession, a joint investigation with police in Kampong Speu led them to three more suspects in the province’s Phnom Srouch district.   He said police seized 40 kilogrammes of Ketamine and more than 11 tonnes of drug-related chemical substances from them.       “They are the target of foreign traffickers and drug producers. They hired a Cambodian farmer’s farm on the pretext of growing mango trees and used the p...

Buth Reaksmey Kongkea The Phnom Penh Appeal Court on May, 2022 upheld a ruling that sentenced three current and two former members of the Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association (ADHOC) to five years in prison for bribery. The five were accused of allegedly bribing the 23-year-old mistress of former CNRP President Kem Sokha for $200 in exchange for not testifying in the Sokha sex scandal case in 2016. Court Presiding Judge Sin Visal stated that the accused were identified as Ny Sokha, Yi Soksan, Lim Mony, Nay Vongda, and Ny Chakrya. Judge Visal said that they all were sentenced on September 26, 2017, by the Phnom Penh Municipal Court to five years in prison, but the term of their sentence was reduced to 14 months in prison, with the remainder of the sentence suspended. He said that they were charged with “bribery of a witness” under Article 548 of the Criminal Code, but refuted the sentence and took the case to the Appeal Court. “Based on specific evidence in the...

Buth Reaksmey Kongkea     Officials in Battambang province have found artifacts and ancient coins under a 300-year-old Buddhist temple in Mong Russei district. They said the artifacts were found on Wednesday when a dilapidated temple was dismantled to be replaced with a new one in Talos commune. Battambang provincial deputy governor Soeum Bunrithy said that at about 10 am the pagoda committees dismantled the 17 th century Buddhist temple Sovannphoumi Thmey because it was in a state of ruins. Bunrithy explained that the artifacts were discovered while excavators started digging through a hole found inside the temple.   He said the artifacts included 20 different potteries made of baked clay, copper and bronze articles, two dozen Siamese bronze and copper coins, copper bells and over 3000 other silver coins.    He added that Battambang provincial authorities were informed about the find and provincial governor Sok Lou visited the site yesterday to inspe...