A 22-YEAR-OLD man who was doused in a liquid that may or may not have been acid appeared for questioning on Monday at Phnom Penh Municipal Court, where he demanded that criminal charges be brought against his assailant, and that he receive US$30,000 in compensation along with $1,000 to cover his medical expenses.

Hor Tin had previously failed to appear for a series of court appearances since the January 4 incident. Lim Soma, a 41-year-old dentist, has acknowledged pouring a liquid on Hor Tin but has repeatedly said that it was a tooth whitener used in her dental practice and not acid, a claim she reiterated Tuesday.

I don’t believe the court will drop the case ... and I will try my best to punish her.

The court has not brought any charges against her in the case, and Ek Chheng Huot, the deputy prosecutor who questioned Hor Tin, declined to comment when reached by phone on Tuesday.

Hor Tin and Lim Soma had previously been asked to reach an out-of-court settlement, but Lim Soma rejected the $10,000 compensation suggested by Hor Tin’s employer, Kea Sokheang, whose personal dispute with Lim Soma prompted the attack.

Kea Sokheang said Tuesday that Hor Tin was accompanied by two lawyers in the courtroom, but he declined to elaborate on his testimony.

Last week, he said the lawyers would “bring video footage and photographs taken after the attack as well as doctor’s prescriptions” in order to prove the veracity of Hor Tin’s claims.

He said on Tuesday that he hoped the court would pursue criminal charges against Lim Soma.

“I don’t believe the court will drop the case this time, and I still try my best to punish her,” he said.

Lim Soma said Tuesday that the ever-increasing compensation and other demands from Hor Tin were becoming unreasonable, and stood by her original assertion that she had not done anything wrong.

She has said that she poured the liquid on Hor Tin to break up an argument between him and her sister. The attack took place in Phnom Penh’s Prampi Makara district.

“How can I pay them? I did not do anything wrong. I think they keep accusing me because they want to see me sleeping in prison,” she said.