A suspect has been identified in a New Year’s Day double-murder in Siem Reap that left one seriously injured victim alive, police confirmed yesterday.

Twenty-three-year-old Chea Sochean from Kampong Chhnang, a co-worker of the victims, was identified by survivor Leng Srey Pov, 28, when she was finally able to speak to police, said Duong Sokha, chief of the provincial serious crimes office.

Sokha said the new information led to a reversal of an earlier police statement that nothing had been taken, saying the suspect had stolen the victims’ money and phones.

“It is a robbery case. The suspect stole about $1,000 belonging to one of the dead men who was about to buy a motorbike, and two phones. But he did not take the two [remaining] phones, because they were locked by password,” said.

Sochean and all three victims worked for the Thai health product company bHIP.

“We got the confirmation from the surviving victim that it was him. They knew each other and stayed in the same room. He committed the crime when the victims were asleep,” Sokha said.

A day after the murder, the suspect’s identity was circulated on social media, something Sokha said made the police’s work more difficult, as he had gone into hiding.

Police were still searching for Sochean as of press time yesterday evening.