A suspected serial dog snatcher was beaten to death last week by dozens of villagers in Takeo province’s Prey Kabbas district, police said Tuesday.
Chum Chhoeun, police chief for Prey Kabbas district, said that Bun Rin, 35, was attacked by a group of angry villagers in Kampeng commune’s Thmei village when he was discovered catching dogs in the night on May 5.
The villagers were fed up with the repeated theft of their dogs and poultry, he said.
Bun Rin had been arrested 10 times, accused of stealing dogs for their meat, Chum Chhoeun said. As his crimes were too petty to be referred to the Takeo provincial court, police repeatedly released him after re-educating him, but he never relinquished stealing dogs, police said.
“We arrested him about 10 times, but he did not change his mind,” Chum Chhoeun said.
Bun Rin’s reputation gained him the nickname the “King of dog thieves” among villagers. He was believed to have poisoned and stolen some 300 dogs, as well as poultry, from villagers’ homes over the past seven years to cater to his wife, who was a dog meat vendor, police said.
Even after separating from his wife, he still stole dogs and chickens, police said.
Takeo provincial police Chief Vuth Phally said it would be difficult to find Bun Rin’s killers because the killing occurred at night.