Phnom Penh Municipal Court yesterday heard the case of a Chinese national accused of stealing $1.2 million from the joint business venture in Phnom Penh of which he was general director.

Presiding judge Yeth Polin said that defendant Luix Lezhong, 45, former general director of Golden Fortune Future (Cambodia) Securities Plc (GFS), was charged by the court’s prosecutor with “breach of special trust by administrators” under article 393 of the Cambodian Penal Code.

“He created three different accounts for himself. He withdrew a total of $1.2 million from his joint venture company without approval from his shareholder, and transferred it into his own accounts for his own use,” she explained.

Luix was arrested by the Ministry of Interior’s Penal Police in March of 2014 after his partner, fellow Chinese national Yuang Quan, 43, filed a lawsuit against him.

“In early 2014, GFS company lost a total of $1.2 million from its account under mysterious circumstances,” Yuang said.

“But after checking the money transfers, we found that that lost money had been transferred to Luix Lezhong’s three different personal accounts,” he added.

Under the penal code, breach of special trust is punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $2,500.

During the hearing, Luix Lezhong admitted his fault, but maintained that he had only withdrawn $800,000, and asked the court to reduce his sentence.

A verdict is due in the case on October 6.