Two garment workers were found dead in separate rented rooms on Wednesday in Phnom Penh’s Meanchey district.
The two workers were allegedly involved in a relationship and police suspect the male victim, 30-year-old Pov Vuth, murdered 33-year-old Suong Thy.
The rooms had been rented in Stung Meanchey II commune’s Damnak Thom III village.
Commune police chief Em Pheary said Thy had a bruise on her neck which could indicate strangling. An electrical wire was also discovered on one arm, suggesting she was given electric shocks.
Thy’s neighbours told police they were not sure of the relationship between the two garment workers, but they were aware they fell in love and lived at separate rented rooms in the village.
On Monday, they went to work and returned to their rooms. Only Wednesday, the neighbours noticed a foul stench coming from Thy’s room and they broke into it to find her rotting corpse.
A few hours later, Pheary said, they found Vuth’s corpse in his room. Police suspect he died from a heart attack.
Dr Nong Sovannroth said that according to his examination, Vuth strangled Thy and gave her electric shocks when he became worried that she wasn’t dead.
Sovannroth said: “The woman was killed about three days ago because her body was rotten and smelled bad.”
He said Thy died in his room because of a chest problem. “The death of the man is connected with a heart attack,” he said.