A pair of monks and a lay person accused of beating a friend to death with a metal pipe and stealing his motorbike on Sunday night had been arrested in Kampong Cham province, police officials said yesterday. 

Kratie provincial deputy police chief Srey Vutha said the men were arrested on Monday in a co-operative effort with military police in Kampong Cham after fleeing the province to Kratie town, where they were caught trying to sell the motorbike.

“They sat and talked to each other at the river bank in Kampong Cham town around midnight, and then one of suspects who is a monk but changed his clothes to a normal person’s clothes, took an iron pipe to hit the victim on the neck and head seven times,” he said.

“Then they pushed the victim into the river, but the other two suspects took the pipe from their friend and hit him many times again until he was dead.”

He said monks May Keana, 19, and Ngek Sokea, 21, had been sent to Kampong Cham provincial military police to face legal action yesterday morning, along with 21-year-old civilian suspect Seng Phorse.

Kampong Cham provincial military police chief Men Bunnarith said yesterday the three suspects would be sent to the provincial court, where they would be charged with murder and robbery.