A Tbong Khmum man was placed in pre-trial detention on Sunday after killing another with a machete as he attended a Pchum Ben party with friends in the province’s Dambe district.

Police arrested 26-year-old Phal Sophann after the attack on Friday in the district’s Chong Cheach commune. He was charged with murder by the Tbong Khmum Provincial Court on Saturday, its spokesman Theng Cheang told The Post on Monday.

“A man named Phal Sophann was charged with murder under Article 199 of the Criminal Code, with the presiding judge issuing a warrant for his detention at Tbong Khmum provincial prison,” Cheang said.

Under Article 199, Sophann faces between 10 to 15 years in prison if found guilty.

Dambe district police chief Peng Eng Hak said Sophann and the 23-year-old victim both resided in Dambe district’s Chong Cheach commune.

Citing what Sophann told the police, Eng Hak said the two men lived in the same village and had been friends until they had an argument. While they later made up, Sophann said he harboured thoughts of revenge.

The victim and seven friends were attending a party at a house in the commune at around 3:30pm on Friday, Eng Hak said when Sophann rode past on a motorcycle.

The victim called out to him to join them for a drink, but Sophann refused, he said.

The victim was walking back to the party when Sophann, having taken a machete from his motorcycle, struck him with a single blow to the right side of the neck, killing him instantly.

Neighbours and party guests held Sophann until police arrived and took him to the Chong Cheach police station for questioning, where he confessed to the killing, Eng Hak said.