Acid attack

A MAN who was seriously injured in an acid attack on Russian Boulevard on Monday night said yesterday he would not pursue legal action against the suspect, a police official said.

Son Kannareth, Russey Keo commune police chief, said he suspected that the victim, who had originally vowed to press charges against his assailant, had decided not to file a complaint out of fear of retribution.

“It is difficult to find the reason, but even though the victim did not file a complaint, we will not [close] this case at this time,” he said. “We will still keep investigating to arrest the suspect and punish [the suspect] through the law.”

The victim said that he had not been involved in any recent disputes, and that he might not have been the intended target of the attack because he did not recognise the assailant, Son Kannareth said.

Chhun Sophea, programme manager at the Cambodian Acid Survivors Charity, said the victim had been transferred to the organisation’s medical facility yesterday.

“He has to spend a long time on treatment because he got seriously injured,” she said.