Police are hunting a man who reportedly stabbed a Chinese national to death and seriously injured his ex-wife and her mother at a Phnom Penh restaurant on Monday.

Boeung Trabek commune police chief Prek Bun Thoeun on Tuesday said Kong Kosal, 39, escaped after stabbing 46-year-old Song Qingjun and injuring Kong Sophara, 32, and Men Eng, 56.

A report, detailing witness testimony, said Kosal stabbed Qingjun 15 times. The suspect then stabbed Sophara in the hands and legs and Eng in the left leg. The suspect fled the scene and the victims were rushed to the Khmer-Soviet Friendship Hospital where Qingjun died, the report said.