A 44-year-old ex-soldier was arrested in Kompong Thom province on Wednesday on suspicion of murdering his former girlfriend’s mother and is still being questioned by police, according to an officer.
Sok Thy was arrested at his home in Stong district’s Stong Commune on Wednesday afternoon, after the body of Boun Moeun, 75, was found inside her home in the same village that morning, said Yong Som, deputy district police chief.
Mr. Som said the woman died from an ax strike to her neck, probably some time between 1 a.m. and 3 a.m.
He said Mr. Thy has denied committing the murder but added that neighbors of Boun Moeun heard the two arguing Tuesday night, just hours before the murder.
According to the neighbors, he said, Mr. Thy wanted custody of the four children he had had with Boun Moeun’s daughter after the mother had blocked his efforts to rekindle their relationship.
Mr. Thy, he added, had also threatened to kill his former girlfriend’s brother on a previous occasion over the same dispute.
“We have a lot of clues suggesting that he is the murderer, but he has not confessed,” Mr. Som said.
