A boy has been arrested after allegedly drowning a toddler in a river on Wednesday in Kampong Chhnang province’s Teuk Phos district.

Khem Vibol, the district police chief, said the suspect was an 11-year-old boy, while the victim was aged just two.

The suspect said that a few months prior to the killing he had an argument with the victim’s mother, who threatened to hit him. This made him angry and he wanted revenge, Vibol said.

At around 9am on Wednesday, the suspect was riding his bike home from school and saw the toddler playing alone. He put the boy on his bike and headed to a river around a kilometre away.

“After arriving at the river, the suspect held the victim’s head in the water until he drowned,” Vibol said, adding that the suspect then rode back home, leaving the body.

Unable to find their son, the parents asked neighbours to help look for him. A villager told the parents that he had seen the young boy on the suspect’s bike on the way to the river. They rushed to the river, where the body was found, and notified the police.