A 33-year-old motodop accused of raping his underage stepdaughter on multiple occasions last year was tried yesterday at Phnom Penh Municipal Court.

Presiding Judge Sous Sam Ath said Chuch Sokha “forcibly raped his 13-year-old stepdaughter many times at his house [in Po Sen Chey District’s Boeng Prey Commune] while his wife was at work at the local garment factory.”

Sokha was charged with “raping an underage girl” within Article 19 of the penal code.

Ath said “[Sokha] threatened to kill the victim if she would tell her mother, her relatives or other people about the rape”.

Sokha was arrested at his house based on a complaint from his wife on November 1.

Keo Pum, a police officer in Boeng Prey commune, testified that the victim told her grandmother about what was happening. “She did not tell her mother directly, because she was afraid her mother would not believe her,” he said.

The victim’s mother spent the day at the garment factory, often working overtime, so the rapes could have gone on unnoticed for two months, he added.

During the hearing yesterday, Chuch Sokha maintained his innocence and asked for the charges to be dropped.

A verdict will be handed down on February 17.