A village guard got an axe in the head after attempting to keep the peace when an argument sprang up at a New Year’s party in Pursat province’s Krakor district on Thursday.

The guard, 34, was intervening in a fracas between a local villager and five other men when the blow was dispensed, leaving the guard hospitalised.

Although the suspects escaped, cops caught up with two of them on Saturday. The hunt for the other three is ongoing. KOH SANTEPHEAP