The family of an alleged motorcycle thief shot dead by Phnom Penh police last week said Tuesday they have been threatened by police to stay quiet about the incident and are in fear for their lives.
The execution-style killing of Khin Thol, 48—and the subsequent threats from police—has prompted two of the victim’s sons to flee Phnom Penh into the provinces, and has led human rights groups to brand the death an execution.
Calling for the arrest of the police officers who killed her husband, Sim Chay Kim said she is in the process of preparing a complaint to file at Phnom Penh’s Municipal Court. “They [police] killed him.
My husband had a blood disease and could not walk well. He was also handcuffed. It is impossible my husband tried to run away,” Sim Chay Kim said.
The suspected leader of a theft ring, Khin Thol was picked up early Thursday morning on the suspicion he had received a stolen motorcycle.
He was later driven by police to look for evidence near his home, police said.
Dozens of witnesses have told reporters and human rights investigators they then saw a
handcuffed Khin Thol being walked down an railway track and shot to death.
“The people who killed my husband told people, ‘When they cut the grass they must also dig out the roots,’” said Sim Chay Kim, who said she interprets this to mean she could be next.
Sim Chay Kim’s son-in-law, Song Veasna, 26, was taken by a mob on July 21 from police custody, beaten and burned to death near the new O’Russei Market in Phnom Penh.
Although police claim her husband was notorious thief, a police search of Sim Chay Kim’s house on Monday found no evidence to link the family with a crime ring, she said.
Uch Thorn, deputy police chief of Daun Penh district, confirmed this on Tuesday. But Daun Penh police stood by their version of events that Khin Thol died in a hail of bullets, five in his back and one in the head, when he attempted to escape from police custody.
Police will conduct an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the killing, Municipal Police Chief Suon Chhengly and Uch Thorn said Tuesday. Whether any officers will be suspended during the investigation will be discussed with District Governor Suon Rindy, Uch Thorn said.
“We had no alternative. That is why the police opened fire. We are also Buddhists. We did not want to do this, but this was the order,” Uch Thorn said, referring to approval he alleges he received from higher-ups on the day of the shooting. District Governor Suon Rindy defended his staff.
“The police have the right to use weapons if something happens when on duty. We were only sending him to his house to collect evidence. We had no intention to murder him,” he said.
He said the victim was jailed twice before for receiving stolen goods and was organizing men to rob motorcycles around the city.
“He bought about 40 motorbikes from thieves. He also bought weapons for other thieves to go out and rob motorbikes for him,” Suon Rindy said.
Hosting a Cambodia Human Rights Action Committee meeting on Tuesday to discuss the killing, Phuong Sith, executive director of Human Rights Vigilance of Cambodia, said he believes police have threatened the family and hopes they will be protected by the courts.
Eva Galabru, director of local human rights group Licadho, said police involved in the shooting must be suspended and an independent investigation be conducted.
“Even though there are many witnesses, it is hard to imagine they will testify against police officers if they are still on duty,” she said.
(Additional Reporting Chou Sokhom)
