KAMPOT: The family of two young boys, aged three and four, reported their children missing on Tuesday, 20 September at around 6:30 pm in Kampot Province. According to a Facebook post made by the Child Protection Unit (CPU), local police, assisted by residents living in the area, organized several search parties to try and locate the boys who were cousins.
The bodies of the two boys were eventually found in a dam approximately 200 meters from their home, at around 11:30 pm on the same night. The CPU state that initial reports had indicated both boys had been assaulted and had head injuries.
On Wednesday, 21 September, CPU Homicide Investigators, CPU Forensic Teams, and the Ministry of Interior traveled to Kampot to investigate this case. Task Force FOXTROT22 was established with the Kampot Police Command and the Ministry of Interior to specifically investigate the deaths of the two boys.
Following forensic examinations of the deceased and crime scene examinations, the deaths were officially ruled as a homicide. Investigators then spent the next 24 hours locating witnesses and searching multiple crime scenes.
The CPU state that two persons of interest were taken into custody as a result of the extensive inquiries, both of whom are children. Statements have been obtained and confessional evidence recorded, and investigators are reportedly not looking for any other suspects in regard to the murders of the two boys.
"This is a heartbreaking scenario we have two dead children and persons of interest that are also children, it is simply incomprehensible," said James McCabe the CPU’s Director of Operations.
The CPU extends its condolences to the families of the two boys who are devastated by this event, and thank all those involved in this difficult investigation, including the Ministry of Interior and the Kampot Police Command.
