The Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed on October 21 that a 50-year-old citizen of the country was found dead in a hotel room in Sihanoukville, Cambodia, at around 8:00 p.m. on October 20 (local time).
Local police have reported the incident to the Korean Embassy through the head of the Korean community in the area. When present at the scene, this person found a passport, a phone and a piece of paper suspected to be the victim's suicide note.
The Korean Embassy immediately sent consular staff to assist in the investigation and conduct the necessary procedures. Cambodian police are still clarifying the cause of death, while the South Korean side said it will provide maximum support to the victim's family to bring the body back home and arrange the funeral.
Korean authorities confirmed that the possibility of the incident being related to online scams operating in Cambodia is not high, but did not rule out any possibility before the official investigation results.
Sihanoukville - where the Korean man was found dead - once known as Cambodia's "tourism paradise" - is now becoming a hot spot for high-tech crimes and transnational fraud. Hundreds of foreign citizens, including many South Korean, Chinese and Vietnamese, have been detained, tortured, and forced to work in gambling complexes and online fraud management centers here.
In another development, the body of a Korean student - who was tortured to death by a criminal organization in Cambodia - was brought back to the country on October 21 after more than 70 days of discovery.
The student, surnamed Park, was identified as having left South Korea on July 17 with the reason of "denying to exhibit" but was then tricked into going to Bokor Mountain - a place that has recorded many cases of detention and fraud against Koreans.
Park's body was found in a car on August 8, with many traces of serious torture. The case shocked public opinion in South Korea, forcing the government to send a special delegation to Phnom Penh to coordinate the investigation and investigation of the crime.
According to a report by Cambodian police, three Chinese citizens have been prosecuted in connection with Park's death. In South Korea, another suspect accused of tricking Park into opening a bank account and arranging a trip to Cambodia was also arrested on October 19.
