A 27-year-old man who worked as a manager at a microfinance institution in Svay Rieng province was found brutally murdered near his home Sunday morning with his throat slit, multiple ax and knife wounds to his head and torso and burns to his legs indicating electric-shock torture, police said.
The body of Sien Pengsrue was discovered hacked to death and lying in a pool of blood outside his house in Svay Rieng City’s Koy Trabek commune at 4:45 a.m., according to commune police chief Meas Saroeurn.
“The victim’s throat was cut and he was stabbed 11 times with a knife in the back of his neck and struck twice on the top of the head with an ax, while the skin on both the victim’s legs was blackened as a result of electricity,” he said, adding that the victim’s body had been dumped outside his home after being killed at an unknown location.
The victim’s wife, 22-year-old Ku Chandany, told police that at 9 p.m. on Saturday night, her husband received a phone call and subsequently left the house to go and meet the caller, whose identity she did not know.
Ms. Chandany also told police she had called her husband’s phone repeatedly but no one answered, and at about 3 a.m. the phone was switched off. His iPhone and a diamond ring worth more than $1,000 were missing from his body when it was discovered.
“We haven’t arrested a suspect yet, but our conclusion at this stage is that it is a murder-robbery and because the victim went to meet whoever killed him, the suspect or suspects could be friends or people he knows,” said Mr. Saroeurn.
Pal Radal, brand manager of Sathapana Limited Microfinance in Svay Rieng City, said that Sien Pengsrue had been employed there for three years and had been promoted to the position of chief credit agent about one year ago.
“None of the staff members had grudges against him, he was friendly and well liked within the company,” Mr. Radal said.
