Pursat provincial police arrested a man on Saturday on charges of raping a four-year-old girl.

Talou Sen Chey district police chief Hem Mony said on Monday the suspect is 20 years old and a resident in Talou commune’s Roha Nil village where the alleged crime took place.

Police said the suspect admitted to raping the girl and his confession is consistent with the complaint filed by the mother.

“In addition to rape, the suspect is accused of drug use,” he said.

Mony said the suspect migrated to Thailand in 2018 to work as a driver and had recently returned to Cambodia. He has only been back a couple of weeks and lived 40m from the girl’s home.

Police said he persuaded the girl to go behind his home to pick guava and then raped her.

The girl walked back home crying. Her mother asked what happened but the girl didn’t know how to explain. She kept crying and pointed toward her genital area.

Mony said the mother undressed her and saw bruises in the genital area. She filed a complaint with Talou Sen Chey district police.

Talou commune police arrived at the suspect’s home and took him to the commune police station.

“He said he just touched her genital area with his penis, but he stopped short of penetration. However, at the commune health centre, a doctor discovered lacerations. The doctor referred the girl to the Pursat Provincial Referral Hospital.

“I sent records to the Anti-Human Trafficking and Juvenile Protection Bureau in Pursat province,” Mony said.