BANGKOK: A Thai man suspected of killing a former Cambodian opposition lawmaker in Bangkok confessed to the crime Satur­day in a livestream video.

Wearing a white T-shirt under a bulletproof vest, Ekkalak Paenoi told police and media, “I confess that I did wrong”, after being charged with premeditated murder and unauthorised gun ownership.

“If I dared to do it, I dare to admit to it,” he added.

Lim Kimya, a former lawmaker for the dissolved Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), was gunned down on Tuesday by a motorcyclist as he arrived in Bangkok by bus from Cambodia with his French wife.

Cambodian opposition figures have accused the country’s powerful former leader Hun Sen of ordering the shooting. A Cambodian government spokesman has denied official involvement in the killing.

Police in Cambodia said they arrested the suspect on Wednesday and took him to the Thai border on Saturday following an extradition request.

He was picked up by a police helicopter on arrival and taken to Bangkok. “We can’t determine the motives yet, please give us time,” said Somprasong Yenthuam, a senior police official.

Published in Dawn, January 12th, 2025