A 28-year-old rice farmer was arrested on Tuesday for raping his 5-year-old neighbor in Prey Veng province, police said on Wednesday.
The farmer, Nang Nai, had asked the girl to go with him to pick rattan fruit in the bushes about 180 meters from their homes in Komchay Mear district, said deputy provincial police chief Peou Chivy.
In exchange for picking the fruit, he offered to pay the girl 1,500 riel, or about $0.38, Mr. Chivy said.
As Mr. Nai began to rape the victim, “the girl screamed, so her grandmother heard and went to the scene,” he said.
Later, the grandmother reported the crime to police, Mr. Chivy said.
Under questioning, Mr. Nai confessed to the crime, Mr. Chivy said, adding that the girl’s parents are divorced and she is under the care of her grandmother.
The girl did not appear to have sustained serious injuries after being assessed at a hospital, the police chief said.
Mr. Nai was detained at the district police station and will be sent to the provincial court today, Mr. Chivy added.
