Military general sentenced to Life

A former military personnel, Kim Marintha, 57, who confessed to killing his wife and their 6-year-old daughter has been sentenced to life in prison by a Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Thursday. Marinatha killed Va Dary,30-year old who he accused of online dating and gambling, and killed her last year February, in the process knocking their 6-year old daughter, breaking her neck in the fall.

Marinatha later ordered his son, Kim Sem Rithy, and son-in-law,Chea Sok Samnang, to dispose off the body in the rural Kom­pong Speu province.Kim Sem Rithy was sentenced to 2 and half years, while the son-in-law, Chea Sok Samnang was sentenced to 18 months for taking part in dumping the woman's corpse at Kom­pong Speu province.

               

                      Marinatha and Da Vay when the going was good

In his defence, Marinatha said he had killed the two "Accidentally". He said his wife was gambling and having an online affair, which caused him to have a temper, and killing the two "accidentally".The presiding judge,Judge Heng Kesaro sentenced Marinatha to death for "Premeditated" murder.

Judge Heng Kesaro also ordered Marinatha to pay the sum of $200,000 to Da Vy's mother, Mey Lyly.

The former military general was arrested while attempting to cross the border from Thailand to Laos with the assistance of INTERPOL in September 2014, 7 months after the killing of the wife and their daughter.

According to police reports, Marinatha, the owner of GST bus, had bought big plastic bags on February 12th, 3 days to the murder of the wife.

Mey Lyly said that her daughter while at the apartment her husband had given to her, had only lived there as a slave, and he only visited her once or twice in a week. She said her daughter fall in love with a Cambodian man in Japan. She also said she is happy that Marinatha will spend the rest of his life in Jail.

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