Phnom Penh police arrested a construction worker who confessed to hacking his sleeping colleague to death in anger over unwashed dishes, police said on Monday.
The dispute between Proeung Kosal, 25, and Mek Sopheak, 35, erupted after a night out drinking and eating dog meat on Saturday, according to Meanchey district police chief Hour Meng Vang.
Upset at Mek Sopheak’s regular refusals to help wash dishes, Mr. Kosal “stabbed the victim while he was drunk and sleeping,” first using a vegetable knife and then an ax at the Chak Angre Krom commune construction site where the pair lived and worked, Mr. Meng Vang said.
Mr. Kosal went to bed for the night and alerted neighbors to his unresponsive roommate at about 6 a.m. the next day.
The neighbors in turn notified police after noticing large amounts of blood on and around the victim, Mr. Meng Vang said.
“The suspect confessed to the crime,” he said, adding that his office was preparing to send Mr. Kosal to the Phnom Penh Municipal Court for additional questioning today.
