Cambodian woman drowns 6 year-old girl to steal her earrings

By Robert Carmichael

Phnom Penh (dpa) – A Cambodian woman has been charged with

intentional killing after she admitted drowning a 6-year-old girl to

steal her gold earrings worth 45 dollars, national media reported

Wednesday.

   Police in the central province of Kampong Thom said 19-year-old

Rok Rorn was arrested Monday and confessed to the murder.

   She later took police to a rice field where she had hidden the

girl’s body, around a kilometre from where she claimed to have killed

her.

   “When it was quiet and a good moment, she lured the victim to take

her earrings and then pushed her head into the river where she died,”

the district’s deputy police chief, Ke Kanchana, told the Cambodia

Daily newspaper.

   He added that Rok Rorn, who faces up to 20 years jail, had shown

no remorse when confessing.

   “Her face is not sad, and she doesn’t feel sorry for the victim,”

he said.

   A human rights worker at local rights group Licadho said such

crimes were not uncommon.

   “These crimes happen to young children aged 3-5 every year,” said

Am Sam Ath.

   He advised parents to ensure they knew where their children were.

   “They should not allow their young children to walk alone when

they wear jewellery,” he said. “They are a vulnerable group.”