Cambodian wife, son stumble on husband's wedding

Mon, 17 Dec 2007

Phnom Penh - A Cambodian wedding was thrown into chaos when the groom's wife and 17-month-old son stumbled across him and a new spouse greeting guests outside their reception party, local media and restaurant staff said Monday. Local daily Rasmei Kampuchea reported Soung Soh Leap, 30, and her son believed Lam Davuth, 38, was away on business and were going to market when they happened by a restaurant and saw him with a new bride welcoming guests.

A receptionist at Sorya Restaurant confirmed the story.

"The first wife screamed a lot ... but after he talked quietly to the other bride, the new one seemed okay," the receptionist, who declined to be named, said by telephone.

Police said they declined Soh Leap's requests to intervene as it was a domestic matter and the wedding eventually went on.

Adultery and bigamy are criminal offenses punishable by jail in Cambodia, but Soh Leap would need to make a formal complaint to the court before action could be taken, police said.

More on VN woman with Cambodian passport arrested in Singapore by anti-vice officers

Tue, 21 Aug 2007
Vietnamese woman's third husband faces jail for role in bigamy

DPA

Singapore - The third husband of a Vietnamese woman convicted of bigamy was found guilty of helping her make false declarations to Singapore immigration authorities, news reports said on Tuesday. The Kuan Meng, a 36-year-old sales engineer, could face seven years behind bars, The Straits Times reported.

He married Tran Thi Gai, 29, while she was still wed to her first husband, Liong Tian Yong. Tran was jailed earlier for 11 weeks after marrying three men in five years.

Tran first married Liong to extend her stay in Singapore, the court heard on Monday. She was holding a Cambodian passport.

She marred Kelvin Quek Tze Beng in 2003 using another name. In August 2004, she tied the knot with The under her real name as she was pregnant with his child.

Investigations revealed that Tran was arrested by anti-vice officers and repatriated to Cambodia after she came to Singapore in 2002, the report said.

She moved to Vietnam and returned to Singapore on a fake Vietnamese passport. She was arrested by anti-vice officers again and sent back.

She entered Singapore in May 2004 on a new Vietnamese passport and gave birth in September that year.

When The filled out disembarkation cards for Tran on trips to Malaysia, he declared she had never used a passport under a different name, although he knew of her previous run-ins with immigration.

He also kept silent when they got married as Tran declared that she was single before the commissioner of oaths.

Lawyer Irving Choh told the court that The committed the offences out of love.

Vietnamese woman [with Cambodian passport] jailed for bigamy [-Shouldn't it be called trigamy?]

17 August 2007
DPA

SINGAPORE - A Vietnamese woman who married a third husband while still wed to the first was sentenced to 11 months in jail, news reports said on Friday.

Tran Thi Gai, 29, pleaded guilty to bigamy, making a false marriage declaration and lying that she had not used a different passport or name to enter Singapore, The Straits Times said.

The court heard that Tran married her first husband, Liong Tian Yong, in 2001 so that she could extend her stay in Singapore. She was then holding a Cambodian passport.

She married Kelvin Quek Tze Beng in 2003. A year later, she married her third husband, The Kuan Meng, as she was pregnant with his child.

The, a 36-year-old sales engineer, has been charged with abetting her and is scheduled to go on trial Monday.

Tran’s offences were discovered when she applied for permanent resident status last year.