By Lauren Crothers
PHNOM PENH
A Cambodian tycoon who fled to Singapore after he was caught on CCTV attacking a female TV host in a restaurant was arrested in Phnom Penh on Saturday morning after catching a flight back to the capital.
Until a few days ago, Sok Bun was the president of the Cambodian Valuers and Estate Agents Association and had asked Prime Minister Hun Sen to ensure leniency and a fair trial would await him.
Bun -- who also used the honorific of "oknha", bestowed upon those who donate about $100,000 or more to the development of the country -- also offered $100,000 to his victim, who refused to settle out of court.
On July 7, video footage went viral on Facebook that showed him beating up the TV host, Ek Sokcheata, in a restaurant.
A waiter can also be seen trying to intervene, but Bun’s bodyguard draws a gun during the altercation, which took place on July 2, and prompted the victim to file an attempted murder complaint with the Phnom Penh Municipal Court.
A warrant was only issued after the video went viral.
The Cambodia Daily on Saturday quoted the Ministry of Interior’s penal police department director Sok Khemarin as saying that Bun was arrested at Phnom Penh International Airport after flying back in from Singapore, where he had claimed he needed medical treatment.
"Now we have sent him to the Phnom Penh Municipal Court for questioning," Khemarin told the Daily.
Bun is the latest in a string of tycoons who have fallen afoul of the law in Cambodia.
In April, following nearly five months on the run, wealthy businessman and former defence ministry official Thong Sarath was arrested in Vietnam for orchestrating the execution-style murder of a Chinese businessman in Phnom Penh.
Then, in May, Russian billionaire Sergei Polonsky was arrested aboard his luxury yacht, moored off the coast of a private island he owned.
He was deported to Russia, where he was wanted on embezzlement charges.
