Two teenage farmhands were arrested Monday evening in Tbong Khmum province for the murder and robbery of cashew farm owner Thai Huoy, whose body was found in a well in Kompong Cham province on Sunday, according to police.
Kompong Cham deputy military police chief Sem Kheang said the accused, Khorn Chay, 20, and Mann Ro, 19, were sent to provincial military police headquarters for questioning before their case goes to court today.
Mr. Kheang, whose forces cooperated with local police on the case, said the two men confessed to murdering Thai Huoy, whose farm they had been working on for five years. They also confessed to stealing $1,500 from her house and fleeing the scene on a stolen motorbike, he said.
“They confessed that they killed Thai Huoy, stole her property and dropped her body in a well before escaping,” Mr. Kheang said, adding that police believe the crime was premeditated.
Thai Huoy’s brother, Kang Kim Huy, said he had no doubt that Mr. Chay and Mr. Ro were the killers.
“I know Mr. Chay and Mr. Ro killed my sister because they were the only ones staying with her when the incident happened,” he said.
Thai Huoy’s relatives drove by her house in Kompong Cham on Thursday and noticed that nobody was home. They filed a missing persons report on Sunday with district police, who found Thai Huoy’s body that day.
Mr. Kim Huy said his sister lived in Phnom Penh but would visit the farm in Kompong Cham up to four times a month.
He said that along with prosecution of the two suspects, the family would demand 100 million riel, or about $25,000, in compensation for Thai Huoy’s murder.
