City court has asked the police to apprehend and escort Prince Norodom Ranariddh to its venue for questioning upon his return to Cambodia, local media said on Tuesday.

The Phnom Penh Municipal Court issued a warrant on Friday to ask the National Police to make the prince himself respond to an accusation that he pocketed the money from selling the headquarters of the co-ruling Funcinpec Party, which he had headed before October 2006, the Cambodian Daily said.

"The warrant is being sent to the National Police. We must comply with the court's warrant," Deputy National Police Commissioner Sok Phal was quoted as saying.

Meanwhile, the prince's lawyer Liv Sovanna was quoted as saying that the court issued the document after deciding that the prince had twice failed to attend court when summoned over a breach of the trust lawsuit that Funcinpec field against him over the sale of the party's headquarters.

The prince is quite prepared to return to Cambodia and face the court of his own accord, and has previously asked for his questioning to be delayed because he was too busy in France to attend, he said.

"The prince will go to the court by himself," he said.

Ranariddh, currently on a teaching journey in France, had denied the accusation.

Source: Xinhua