One Chinese national is in custody and two suspects are at large following their alleged involvement in the fatal shooting on Sunday of a soldier moonlighting as a security guard, officials said.
The soldier was killed as a mob chased the two suspects through a Phnom Penh housing complex after they robbed a bookstore, police said.
Two other Chinese men were arrested on Wednesday and questioned by police.
They were released after police reviewed the bookstore’s security footage and determined the pair was not involved in the robbery.
“Police checked the security camera and then we could identify the suspects,” said Pur Senchey district police chief Yim Sarann.
The suspect in custody told police that he and his accomplices knew the bookstore owner had recently received a cash transfer from China, Mr. Sarann said, declining to identify the suspect.
About $500 was stolen from the bookstore. He said the detained suspect acted as a lookout during the robbery, and would be sent to the Phnom Penh Municipal Court today.
Mr. Sarann, who on Wednesday said two suspects had been arrested, explained that he had withheld information about the third suspect for fear it could compromise the investigation.
