A 64-year-old former village chief accused of raping four girls between the ages of 9 and 12 is slated to appear at Kompong Speu Provincial Court today, police said Sunday.
Muong Muth was caught by police Thursday morning in the act of trying to rape a 12-year-old girl in Kong Pisei district’s Chong Rok commune, said commune police chief Kheng Chantol.
Muong Muth, who was chief of Prey Rong village in the 1980s and 1990s, had raped the girl on three previous occasions, Kheng Chantol said. He was caught this time because two young boys saw the former chief grab the girl while she was bathing, and reported it to the police, Kheng Chantol added.
After his arrest, Muong Muth admitted to the rape of the 12-year-old as well as the rapes of three other young girls, said Ouk Sophal, deputy provincial anti-human trafficking police chief.
“[Muong Muth] usually paid 2,000 riel to [the girls] to keep them quiet,” Kheng Chantol said, adding that the former village chief also threatened to kill them if they ever spoke about the assaults.
The rapes are alleged to have occurred on Muong Muth’s farm, at a local school and at a village office from September onward, Kheng Chantol said.
Uch Beau, provincial director of local rights group Adhoc, said this is the first time Kompong Speu has seen a rape case with so many underage victims.
