Prey Kabbas district police on Monday arrested the fugitive suspected of raping and killing a nine-year-old girl in Takeo Province on December 3.

District police chief Chum Chhoeun identified the suspect as Yen Thy, 40 – a resident of the district’s Champa commune.

He was detained on charges of premeditated murder after he raped and killed a nine-year-old girl from the same commune on December 3. The suspect fled after the crime occurred and was only arrested by police this week.

District and commune police, under the guidance of provincial police chief Sok Samnang, detained the suspect after he tried to return to his home one night.

“We arrested and detained the suspect who tried to sneak into his own house to collect clothes and was found by a nearby villager who told the police, who visited the house and arrested him."

“After we detained him, he was sent to Takeo provincial police to follow other legal procedures,” Chhoeun said.

He said after police interrogated Thy, he confessed to raping and murdering the girl then throwing her body into a pond behind his house before fleeing.

According to the district police report, the girl was collecting rice from a field with her grandmother who went home early and left the girl on the street. At this point, Thy, who was drunk, coerced her into his house.

According to a young boy who was witness to the incident, the young girl was shouting for help as Thy took her by the hand into his home. The boy alerted other villagers. However, the suspect had already murdered the girl and fled by the time they arrived.

The Child Protection Unit (CPU) said that a Joint Task Force – comprised CPU members, the Takeo Police Command and the Ministry of Interior – had conducted a manhunt for Thy since December 3.

The victim’s family has been informed about the arrest, with the CPU thanking all members of the task force for their efforts in capturing the suspect.

Sok Samnang could not be reached for comment on the case.