41-year-old Thai ex-marine captured at diner in Cambodia, authorities seeking Vietnamese’ spotter’ who identified sufferer
Police in Cambodia announced on Wednesday evening that the Thai believe wanted for killing a former Cambodian opposition MP was being detained.
Ekalak Paenoi, 41, fled across the border after Lim Kimya was shot on Tuesday night. Around 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday evening, he was apprehended at a diner in Battambang territory.
The suspect was taken to the Battambang Provincial order center before being sent to the Internal Security Command in Phnom Penh for further questioning by Thai police, who were joined by Bangkok Metropolitan Police researchers.
According to police sources, Mr. Ekalak’s arrest warrant for unlawful entrance was to be followed by Thailand’s extradition.
The think, also known as” Sergeant Em,” had previously served in the Royal Thai Navy’s marine army and was now employed as a motorcycle taxi drivers. He was discovered to have an outstanding warrant for crimes involving assets and a legal record.
The suspect was likely a weapon for use, according to Pol Lt Gen Sayam Boonsom, director of the Metropolitan Police Bureau. Someone may have already identified the goal for him.
Later, authorities released a photo of the person who was identified as Lim Kimya’s target. According to reports, he was a Vietnamese regional who traveled on Lim Kimya’s shared vehicle on Tuesday from Siem Reap to Bangkok.
The hunter who carried out the vicious attack in a crowded place close to Wat Bowonniwet Vihara in Bangkok’s Phra Nakhon city was on the lookout for an arrest permit before on Wednesday.
Lim Kimya, 73, had really taken a vehicle from Siem Reap, Cambodia, to the capital just hours before. A waiting shooter fired three shots in front of his wife and brother before shooting him dead.
As a police attempted to revive him, Lim Kimya lay on his back, covered in a violet polo shirt and white pants, surrounded by a pool of blood. A tiny blue suitcase lay outside.
According to a policeman cause, an autopsy revealed that the defendant’s heart and liver were damaged when two bullets were fired into the right part of his back.
The shooter fled on a bike, which was later discovered abandoned at a Suan Luang neighborhood gas station. The suspect, who was not the motorcycle’s landlord, had been using it for a short while before Samut Prakan.
He apparently was seen leaving the area in a green-yellow vehicle. Sa Kaeo province’s immigration officers received an alert about his potential emigration.
Social effect
Prior to the 2018 election, Lim Kimya was a member of the popular opposition known as the Cambodia National Rescue Party ( CNRP ). He had been removed from power as a result of an alleged treason plot. The ruling Cambodian People’s Party ( CPP ), led by Hun Sen, claimed at the time that the accusations against it were made up.
According to a spokesman for the Thai authorities, Pen Bona stated that the killing was in the hands of the royal state of Thailand. He said the Thai government was often accused by criticism “extremists” of being behind situations.
The Thai government’s official, Nikorndej Balankura, stated that the country’s authorities are conducting a thorough research to ensure correct prosecution in accordance with Thai law.
According to individual requests for comment, the Thai and European embassies did not respond right away.
” We will investigate and determine if the motives]for the killing ] were personal or otherwise”, Thai government spokesperson Jirayu Houngsub said.
” We don’t like our criticism party to link this to politicians because it would affect the government’s photo”, he added. ( Story continues below )
Blood staining the earth at the scene where a former Thai opposition lawmaker Lim Kimya, 73, was shot dead, in Bangkok on Wednesday. ( Photo: Reuters )
Cambodia’s government, led by the CPP for more than four decades, has conducted a brutal, years-long assault on its competitors, with values of lawmakers and activists jailed, some in tribunal, and lots more fleeing into captivity. It has denied persecuting the criticism.
Hun Sen, who ruled Cambodia for almost four years before stepping down in 2023 and giving energy to his youngest son, Hun Manet, has been accused by rights groups of using the legal structure to thwart any opposition to his law.
” The Cambodian government has intimidated, surveilled and harassed former CNRP members — including those living in exile in neighbouring Thailand”,  , Bryony Lau, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch ( HRW) said in a statement earlier.
Senator Angkhana Neelapaijit, who champions human rights protection, called on Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra to resolve the case swiftly. The Cambodian government and the prime minister have good relations, and they must work together to speed up and prosecute those responsible, according to Ms. Angkhana.
Ms. Angkhana said the most recent brazen attack makes Bangkok seem like a safe haven for foreign activists, citing a UN report on forced disappearances of foreign activists in recent years.
The murder of Lim Kimya occurred on the same day that Hun Sen, who is still highly regarded, called for a new law defining anyone who tries to overthrow his son Hun Manet’s government as “terrorists.”
On Wednesday, the suspect’s motorcycle was discovered abandoned at an LPG station in Bangkok’s Suan Luang district. ( Police photo )