An acid attack on couple in Phnom Penh on Saturday is thought to have been the result of a love triangle, police said yesterday.

Sen Sok district police chief Mak Hong said yesterday that a relationship was assumed to be the reason behind the attack – as the woman is thought to have had two partners at the same time. “Her first relationship with a man had not finished when she fell in love with another man [her partner now],” he said.

The couple were riding a motorbike on Russian Federation Boulevard at around 8:20pm when they were attacked from behind by two men on a motorbike. Eang Tha received injuries to her face and hands, while her partner’s hands were burned in the attack.

The injuries, officials said on Sunday, could have been worse had they not been helped at the scene by a passer-by.