A Koh Kong resident was electrocuted on Monday evening as he attempted to take down the commercial logo of Acleda Bank – something happening at branches nationwide after the Council of Ministers last week ordered the bank to change its logo, citing its similarity to that of the Ministry of Economy and Finance.

Chhum Chet, 27, was attempting to remove the logo from the bank’s Sre Ambel district branch when the crane he was in came in contact with an exposed electrical wire, killing him on the spot, deputy district police chief Nget Hul said yesterday.

“According to eyewitness accounts, the death of the victim was caused by the carelessness of the victim,” he said.

Hul added that crane’s owner, Kem Thy, had been hired for $50 to bring down the logo, and that Chet had misjudged the mechanism’s distance from nearby electric cables.

Last Friday, the Council of Ministers, chaired by Prime Minister Hun Sen, asked the bank to replace its logo – a mythical golden swan called Hang – because it was being confused with the Ministry of Economy and Finance’s logo featuring the same bird.

Acleda on Sunday unveiled a new logo, pegging the cost of revamping its signage at all its branches and ATMs, as well as updating company marketing materials, at $3.5 million.

Say Khan, the branch’s manager, said senior staff had personally offered compensation to Chet’s family and while they were saddened by his death, the bank should not be held responsible for incident.