Thai on trial for spying

A Thai man went on trial yesterday for allegedly spying on Thailand's former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra while he was in Cambodia as a guest of the Government, a case that threatens to worsen a diplomatic feud between the two nations.

Thai national Siwarak Chothipong, an employee of the Cambodia Air Traffic Service, which manages flights in the country, was accused of stealing Thaksin's flight schedule before his November 10 arrival and sending it to the Thai Embassy in Phnom Penh.

Siwarak, 31, denied stealing the document.

"I took a look at the flight schedule and made a phone call to Kamrob about the flight schedule," Siwarak told the Cambodian court.

If found guilty, he faces up to 15 years in prison.