Following her appearance at the Phnom Penh Municipal Court on Tuesday, Khom Chandaraty will appear before the court again on April 29 in connection to a defamation suit filed against her and acting CNRP president Kem Sokha by social media celebrity Thy Sovantha.
Chandaraty, a 24-year-old salon worker also known as “Mon Srey”, has been asked to appear before the court in a summons dated April 18, with her appearance coming two days after Sovantha, who is expected to be in court on April 27.
“We will call upon the both of them for interrogation, but since it is ethically confidential I cannot talk about the details,” said Keo Socheat, a deputy prosecutor at the court.
Sovantha said she was still deliberating as to whether she would go to court. Chandaraty’s lawyer, Try Chhun, declined to comment on the summons.
Sovantha is suing Chandaraty and Sokha over comments they allegedly made during a recorded flirtatious conversation that was leaked on the internet.
The man in the conversation denies having a relationship with Sovantha or buying her a car, adding that former prominent opposition supporter was just using the CNRP “to do politics and get money”.
During the course of questioning in a separate case on Tuesday, in which Chandaraty has been accused of prostitution and lying to police, the salon worker allegedly identified herself and Sokha as the two people on the recording.
A court statement, released late Tuesday night, added that she claimed that Sokha asked her to deny their relationship and that their tryst was arranged by unidentified persons.
