Neang Chreuk (centre), who was sentenced to 18 years in prison for murder, is seen at Phnom Penh Municipal Court yesterday. Photograph: Pha Lina/Phnom Penh Post

The Phnom Penh Municipal Court sentenced a woman to 18 years in prison yesterday for stabbing coffee shop owner Neang Youn to death near the Streng Meanchey bridge in April.

Thirty-eight-year-old Neang Chreuk was convicted of intentional murder for the crime.

Her boyfriend, Keo Leng, 23, was sentenced to two years for his involvement.

A second-year university student, he picked her up after the stabbing on a motorbike and spirited her off to Takeo province.

She told the court that Neang Youn was supposed to sell her the coffee shop for US$2,500. Instead, Neang Youn kept the money and the shop, putting it back up for sale.

The murder happened at 2am in the morning on April 12.

Afterward, Neang Chreuk found the money in the bedroom and took off. She called her boyfriend, who picked her up.

As for the money, she gave it to her boyfriend to buy a new motorbike, because he had sold the old one to help her pay for the coffee shop.

He told the court that he had asked for the money back, but didn’t know where it came from.

To contact the reporter on this story: Lieng Sarith at [email protected]