Chea Kimny, the partner of slain union leader Chea Vichea, lodged a complaint with Phnom Penh Municipal Court Friday seeking $500,000 in compensation when the perpetrators of the killing are found, court officials said.
Investigating Judge Hing Thirith said that Chea Kimny, 34, asked the court to find those responsible for killing Chea Vichea, as she does not believe that alleged suspects Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun are guilty.
“[Chea Kimny] does not believe that the two who were arrested are the real killers,” Hing Thirith said.
Chea Kimny declined to speak to reporters after meeting with the judge for more than two hours. Her lawyer and two human rights workers accompanied her.
At least eight people have come forward in recent weeks to offer alibis for both Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun, claiming that both men were in different locations at the time of Chea Vichea’s killing on Jan 22.
On Friday, opposition parliamentarian and lawyer Sok Pheng wrote to the ministers of Interior and Defense demanding they intervene and stop the alleged torture of suspects while in Military Police and National Police custody.
“Sok Sam Oeun and Born Samnang, who are suspects in the Chea Vichea case, might have been tortured, according to what they told a press conference recently,” Sok Pheng wrote.
“Confessions from torture are not real confessions,” he said.
