Police are investigating the apparent murder of a Toul Kork man after they found his axe-hacked body in Phnom Penh’s Por Sen Chey district.

The victim, 40-year-old Tep Soy of Boeung Kak II commune, was found with what appeared to be multiple axe wounds, said Por Sen Chey district deputy police chief Vong Sereyvuth. The motive remains unclear.

“The body had terrible axe wounds on his face and head,” Sereyvuth said. “Investigators believe [Soy] was murdered, but they are not sure if it was a robbery or a spite-driven attack.”

When police found Soy’s body, they found cuts on his forehead and face, Sereyvuth said. An axe, shoes and a cap were placed next to his body.

Because Soy’s body was found kilometres away from his home, police are looking into the possibility that he was killed during a motorbike robbery, Sereyvuth said.

Soy’s body was taken to a pagoda in Por Sen Chey, where his family lives.