3 days ago
Girlfriend of former abbot arrested in temple fund scandal
Police have arrested a 57-year-old woman, who was a romantic partner of the former abbot of Wat Nakhon Sawan, for alleged involvement in the embezzlement of temple funds.
Another arrest warrant was issued for Sarit Chanprathat, 67, formerly known as Phra Thamma Wachiratheerakun (Thid Sarit), who was expected to report to the police on Thursday evening.
Phuthinee Kawinpaisarn was arrested on Thursday at a residence in Khu Khot district of Pathum Thani province by police from the Anti-Corruption Division with a warrant issued on Aug 6.
She was charged with abetting misappropriation of state assets and misconduct in public office. Monks with ecclesiastical titles receive monthly allowances from taxpayers and are considered public officials.
The former abbot, who also served as the ecclesiastical chief of the central plains province of Nakhon Sawan, was accused last month of having a romantic relationship with Ms Phuthinee and embezzling temple funds with her help.
The case came to light following widely shared photos of the two embracing while the senior monk was wearing a wig. Investigators found Ms Phuthinee had substantial assets, including cars, valuable jewellery and land plots, despite having no clear sources of income.
Thid Sarit, who left the monkhood on July 19, was also accused of secretive affairs with two other women.
The investigation revealed that between March 1, 2024 and July 10, 2025, Thid Sarit had ordered a monk residing at the temple, identified as Phra Sataya Phumdetch, to withdraw money from the temple's bank account. Phra Sataya was then told to transfer the money to his account before transferring it to that of Thid Sarit.
The total sum withdrawn amounted to 4.1 million baht, police said. Investigators later found a total of 405,000 baht had been transferred from Thid Sarit to Ms Phuthinee.
Phra Sataya reported to police to confirm the misconduct, saying he had witnessed Ms Phuthinee coming to visit the former abbot regularly at the temple.
Police gathered enough evidence about both the romantic relationship and the misuse of temple funds, leading to arrest warrants being approved by the Central Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Cases.
Thid Sarit was also found linked to suspected financial irregularities in the Nakhon Sawan Buddhist Park project, which has been under way for more than 15 years and is still not complete. The police investigation is continuing.
