‘No Leads’ in Case of Missing Journalist

Police in Siem Reap say they have no information yet in the disappearance case of a Canadian journalist who has been missing since mid-February.

Dave Walker, 58, disappeared from outside his guesthouse in the tourist town on Feb. 14, but police in the city and local officials say they have been unable to find out what happened to him.

The Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand, where Walker is a member, has said he was working on an investigative story about remnants of the Khmer Rouge, or could have been kidnapped for ransom.

Sort Nardy, chief of police for the province, told VOA Khmer that an investigation continues but so far there have been no leads. “Every day, I push the police forces to investigate,” he said. “But we don’t have any information at all.”

Friends of Walker say he was working in Siem Reap prior to his disappearance. He was producing a film based on the true story of a former Khmer Rouge village chief named Van Chhuon, who is said to have saved more than 100 families from the regime.

Sonny Chhuon, a friend of Walker, said he did not believe his work was related to his disappearance. “It doesn’t affect the government or any individuals,” he said. “The people whom we’ve interviewed have mostly become friends.”

Peter Olsewski, the Siem Reap bureau chief of the Phnom Penh Post, said the community is frustrated at the lack of progress by police.