A Pakistani national was tried yesterday at Phnom Penh Municipal Court over allegations that he stole more than $40,000 from a jewellery shop owner in Banteay Meanchey province.

Presiding Judge Top Chhunheng said 48-year-old Khan Azhar Hameed used the credit card of Portuguese national Carlos Augsto Cabral Lobato De Faria to withdraw money on six occasions between July 25 and 28 last year.

As well as theft, Hameed was charged with “faking a public document” for using his photo on the valid passport of a Chinese national after his own expired, Chhunheng said.

Var Sakda, a vice prosecutor at the court, said Hameed “had lost money gambling … and had the idea to steal the victim’s money”.

Hameed said he gave the money to a friend of De Faria’s, a former casino worker who gave him the card and pin code, and to whom he was in debt.

“The reason why I decided to do this was because I have lost games in the casino and I have also borrowed a lot of money,” he said.

The verdict will be delivered on February 17.