Monk Defrocked for Allegedly Detaining Woman

A Kampot province monk has been defrocked and arrested on allegations that he illegally detained a 19-year-old woman, police said Wednesday.

Ek Ny, 22, was arrested Mon­day, accused of holding the woman against her will for one week in early February at his parents’ house in Chhuk district, said Nuon Sary, provincial anti-human trafficking police chief. Ek Ny was questioned Tuesday at the provincial court and sent to the provincial prison the same evening, Nuon Sary said.

A warrant for Ek Ny’s arrest was issued Feb 12 following complaints from parents of the young woman, who is also from Chhuk district, he added.

Chap Keo, lawyer for the accus­ed, said Ek Ny had been a monk at the district’s Ta Neav pagoda, but voluntarily left the monkhood in early February after falling in love with the woman he had met during a Buddhist ceremony.

The two pursued a love affair over the telephone until Ek Ny defrocked himself and they went to live at his parents’ house, Chap Keo said. The young woman’s parents retrieved her a week later and complained to provincial authorities, he added.

“It is injustice for my client,” Chap Keo said, adding that nearly 100 people gathered in front of Kampot Provincial Court on Tues­day to protest Ek Ny’s arrest.

 

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