The Thai man prosecuted for the murder of a former Cambodian opposition MP in Bangkok said he committed the crime to fulfill an obligation to a person, police told AFP on Sunday.
Ekkalak Paenoi, presented by Thai media as a former soldier, confessed to the crime of the Cambodian opponent, who also held French nationality, in a video broadcast live on Saturday, after being charged with premeditated murder and possession of firearms without authorization.
“The gunman said he accepted the offer to thank someone who helped him during a difficult time after he was discharged from the navy,” said Attaporn Wongsiripreeda, a senior police official in Bangkok.
Some Thai media reported that he received 60,000 baht ($1,700), but Mr. Attaporn told a local television station that the suspect claimed he had not been paid.
Lim Kimya, a former lawmaker for the now-disbanded Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), was shot dead by a motorcyclist on Tuesday as he arrived by bus in Bangkok from Cambodia with his French wife.
Cambodian opposition figures accused Hun Sen, the country’s powerful former leader, of sponsoring the act, but a government spokesman denied any official involvement.
The suspected murderer was arrested in Cambodia on Wednesday, before being extradited to Thailand on Saturday.
According to a police official, an arrest warrant was also issued against a Cambodian accomplice.
Many Cambodian opposition activists have fled to Thailand in recent years to escape the repression they reportedly face in their country. Some were arrested and deported to their country.
Hun Sen ruled Cambodia with an iron fist for nearly four decades, with human rights groups accusing him of using the justice system to crush opposition to his rule.
He stepped down and handed over power to his son Hun Manet in 2023, but he is still considered very powerful in the kingdom. On Tuesday, Hun Sen called for the adoption of a new law describing as “terrorists” those who would try to overthrow Hun Manet’s government.
