In the latest among an explosion of armed robberies around the country, the head of Phnom Penh’s anti-terrorism police had his Honda Dream motorbike stolen on Tuesday night by men wielding swords and pistols, police said on Wednesday.
Leng La was riding his 2013 Honda Dream to check on construction work in Pur Senchey district’s Choam Chao commune at about 7 p.m. when he was alerted to a dispute nearby, said district penal police chief Chea Sovann.
“He got a call about workers having an argument with each other,” he said. “But when he arrived at the quiet place about 1 km away…two men with samurai swords were standing on the street to block him.”
“Two other men with pistols stood in a dark place and shot multiple times. When he saw one of their shadows, he lay on the ground and moved to take cover, and shot back several times.”
Mr. Sovann said one of the bandits took the opportunity to seize the officer’s motorbike.
“When he was busy fighting back with the suspects, his motorbike, which was parked nearby, was stolen by somebody and it sped away,” he said.
“It’s really interesting: Even though the officer was wearing his police uniform and had a pistol on his hip, the suspects still dared to rob and shoot him.”
Mr. Sovann said a team of officers investigated the scene on Wednesday and found one bullet casing.
“We have not arrested anyone yet, but we are proceeding in the investigation,” he said.
The police official added that municipal police chief Chuon Sovann donated a small, silver-colored scooter to the aggrieved bureau chief on Wednesday.
“The police chief donated one motorbike to him to continue his job,” he said.
