The Kratie Provincial Court on Thursday jailed a 28-year-old man on aggravated rape charges after he was caught raping an 8-year-old boy earlier this week, a police official said.
Ya Than was arrested at his house in Sambor district’s Kompong Cham commune on Tuesday.
According to police, he paid his young neighbor 1,500 riel (about $0.38) to accompany him to the Mekong River late Monday night.
When they reached the riverbank, Mr. Than forced himself on the boy, but was spotted by a group of locals and scared away, police said.
“The provincial court charged him with rape with aggravating circumstances,” said Huot Lim Heang, chief of the provincial police’s serious crimes bureau, adding that the suspect was then sent to the provincial prison to await trial.
The charge carries a prison sentence of up to 15 years.
In a separate case, the Pursat Provincial Court on Thursday charged a 61-year-old farmer with the same crime for raping a 12year-old girl multiple times while her parents were away, according to deputy provincial police chief Keo Sokunthea.
“We sent him to the provincial prison at 10 this morning,” he said. “He might die in prison before he is released.”
