Phnom Penh - One of Cambodia's most prominent businessman who was being held at the Interior Ministry on drug-related charges died Tuesday after falling head-first from a first-floor window, a ministry spokesman said. General Khieu Sopheak said there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding Okhna Ou Chhay's death in Phnom Penh. He added that inquiries into how Chhay was left alone, allowing the incident to occur, were continuing.
"We are also still investigating the drug case he was arrested over," Sopheak said. "We have not yet determined who is the ringleader."
Chhay, a member of one of the wealthiest families in the northern tourist town of Siem Reap, was arrested last week in Banteay Meanchey, a north-western province on the Thai border, after returning from a business trip to Thailand. The charges against him included bringing drug-producing equipment into the country.
Chhay was a longtime adherent of the ruling Cambodian People's Party (CPP) and the president of the Banteay Meanchey Chamber of Commerce. His family-owned Chhay Chhay company had secured a prime position in a special economic zone on the border.
His arrest has been linked to heroin production and a massive bust of methamphetamine-producing chemicals earlier this year in the south-western province of Kampong Speu, 40 kilometres from Phnom Penh.
However, Sopheak declined to give further details of the charges the prominent businessman would have faced, citing an ongoing investigation.
Chhay was also named in local media as an economic adviser to National Assembly President Heng Samrin although there was no suggestion Heng Samrin was aware of his alleged drug-related activities.
Cambodia, with its porous borders and endemic corruption, has long been recognized as a major regional transit point for illegal drugs, and recent high-profile busts have raised concerns that it is also fast becoming a significant drug producer, prompting the government to crack down.
