The Phnom Penh municipal police chief on Tuesday suspended a police officer after a video emerged on social media of him hitting a woman.

In a video posted on Monday to Facebook, First Lieutenant Kao Sam Ol was seen slapping a woman, Dy Lyna, 37, who was on her motorbike. The incident was reported to have occurred on Street 298 in the capital’s Chamkarmon district.

Lyna, a local nurse, wrote on her Facebook page that she was making her way to the parking lot of Olympic Market when she was stopped by Sam Ol because she was not wearing a helmet and had been driving in the wrong direction on a one-way street. She explained that because he jumped out to stop her on her motorbike, she was unable to stop in time and hit Sam Ol’s leg, who swore at her.

“I took out my phone to call my family, but he thought I was taking picture,” Lyna wrote.

“He attempted to seize my phone, but instead dropped his phone. He picked it up and slapped me.”

A letter, signed by Phnom Penh Municipal Police Chief Choun Sovann and obtained by The Post on Tuesday, says Sam Ol has been suspended for “showing immoral and indecent behaviour and using offensive words, resulting in the loss of reputation and dignity of the National Police”.

A letter which appears to be a contract between Sam Ol and Lyna, and received by The Post on Tuesday, states an agreement that if Lyna is required to receive treatment after the assault, Sam Ol will pay for it. According to the letter, both parties promised not to post any more pictures they had taken during the incident to social media or the internet.