Unmasking seized assets and money trail of "Tid Chot - Sika Ae", former abbot of famous Ayutthaya temple and close laywoman who embezzled over 100 million baht over past 3 months

Today (11 Sep 2026) at 11:30 AM at the Crime Suppression Division, Pol. Lt. Gen. Nattasak Chaowanasai, Commissioner of the Central Investigation Bureau, along with Pol. Maj. Gen. Jaroonkiat Pankaew, Deputy Commissioner of the Central Investigation Bureau, Pol. Maj. Gen. Pattanasak Buppasuwan, Commander of the Crime Suppression Division, Pol. Col. Patak Khwanna, Deputy Commander of the Crime Suppression Division, Acting Pol. Col. Jetniphat Siriwat, Superintendent of Sub-Division 1, CSD, Mr. Kamonsit Wongbutnoi, Deputy Secretary-General of AMLO, and Mr. Kritsakon Sanitsakdi, Inspector of the National Office of Buddhism, held a press conference detailing the operation to arrest the abbot of a famous temple in Ayutthaya Province along with his close laywoman for embezzling over 100 million baht of temple funds.

Pol. Lt. Gen. Nattasak revealed that the working team conducted this operation transparently and earnestly, cooperating with relevant agencies to successfully trace the origins of the funds. He emphasized that the behavior of these individuals does not reflect the teachings, the place, the fine traditions, or the code of conduct upheld by the Buddhist institution. It is strictly individual behavior, which must be separated from our Buddhist religion. He confirmed that 92 million baht definitely did not enter the temple's accounts. However, as the inspected and seized assets exceeded 100 million baht, further investigation will be conducted to expand on the sources of these funds and assets. If additional assets are discovered, their origins will be further investigated.

Pol. Maj. Gen. Pattanasak explained the circumstances of the case, stating that around 15 July, a tip-off was received from a good citizen reporting that the abbot of Wat Phutthai Sawan exhibited inappropriate behavior and might be using his temple authority to misappropriate funds, requesting the CSD to investigate. The factual investigation was quite difficult because this temple has many politicians, government officials, wealthy individuals, merchants, military officers, and police officers who respect the abbot, requiring great caution. Upon entering the investigation, sufficient evidence was obtained, showing multiple suspicious elements and two distinct money trails. The first trail involved issuing donation receipts to individuals for renting 22 items of sacred amulets, amounting to over 2.8 million baht, with witnesses confirming that the abbot personally ordered the issuance of these receipts. The second money trail involved donation receipts issued for temple maintenance, amounting to 89 million baht, totaling 92 million baht across both trails. However, when officers inspected the records, they found that not a single baht of this money entered the temple's bank account, leading to the belief that the abbot embezzled the temple's money. "When we had the evidence, why would the Crime Suppression Division wait?" They applied to the Region 1 Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Cases for an arrest warrant against the abbot on charges of 'being an official embezzling assets, performing or omitting duties dishonestly or corruptly, and conspiring to commit money laundering and joint money laundering,' as well as an arrest warrant against Ms. Punyavee, or Sika Ae, on charges of 'supporting an official in committing an offense, and conspiring to commit and jointly committing money laundering.' This led to the operation on 10 September, searching 6 locations. The search results led to the seizure of assets converted from public faith valued at over 215 million baht, hidden in various places in the monk's residence, including cash in both Thai and foreign currencies, gold bars and gold jewelry weighing 1,066 baht-weight, sacred amulets, and land title deeds. Following this, the NACC and AMLO will assist in further expansion to separate the money trails into temple funds versus personal funds, and to remove bad individuals from the temple to restore public faith.

He also addressed two groups of people: for the first group, anyone who feels that their donated money was not used according to its intended purpose can provide information at any time; and for the senior monks, he warned that if anyone is engaging in such behavior, they must stop immediately, as he will not tolerate it if caught. The origin of the two money trails still requires further investigation, but it is clear that they stemmed from sacred amulets purchased by faithful devotees and funds for temple restoration over the 3-month period identified by the police. The modus operandi was that these funds were transferred into the account of a foundation established by the abbot in late 2025. However, the foundation was not properly legally registered and was ineligible to issue official donation receipts. After the money entered the foundation, it was transferred from the foundation into his personal account, despite issuing donation receipts under the temple's name. The assets were partly held by the abbot and partly by the woman. Investigations will continue, as the foundation has no right to issue donation receipts. Therefore, devotees who wish to use donation receipts for tax deductions are requested to file a report with the Crime Suppression Division.

Acting Pol. Col. Jetniphat stated that the origin of this case was not merely about monastic code violations by a senior monk, but as police, it was necessary to step in where legal boundaries were crossed. Regarding monastic discipline violations, the police discussed with relevant agencies and reached a mutual understanding that while improper conduct is handled separately, police do not intervene in that realm unless it crosses into legal offenses. When a public official and abbot fails to fulfill his duties, and public donations meant for sustaining Buddhism are instead routed away from the temple without a single baht entering its account, those funds are transferred to other accounts inconsistent with donation objectives. Furthermore, documents were issued that led buyers of sacred amulets to believe they were receiving tax-deductible donation receipts. It remains uncertain whether these receipts were used for tax deductions by donors. Devotees who made donations to this temple previously and are uncertain whether their funds reached the temple are encouraged to provide information to the CSD. Initially, over 100 million baht was found to have disappeared in less than a year, but since Mr. Chot has been abbot since 2022, it is unknown whether there are additional victims. This is only the first phase of the preliminary investigation, and further actions will follow to resolve all doubts regarding this temple. Nevertheless, he reassured that the temple remains, and Buddhism endures. While Bangkok might have appeared chaotic yesterday, the atmosphere at the temple remained peaceful throughout the day and night. He urged the public not to think that the temple is ruined or lost with the departure of this abbot, and invited everyone to visit, as it remains a beautiful temple.

The foundation established by Mr. Chot is named 'Wan Chot Foundation', combining the names of the temple and the monk, and was newly established in late 2025. It was in its early stages of offering sacred amulets for rental. Whether it was popular or not, he could not answer, but a large amount of money was found in the former monk's possession.

Mr. Kamonsit stated that AMLO collaborated in the joint operation regarding financial data and behavioral patterns. Moving forward, as this involves predicate offenses concerning public officials and corruption in duty, AMLO will proceed with freezing, seizing, and inspecting assets, whether already seized or additional properties linked to the offense. AMLO has no reservations and will prosecute with fairness, transparency, and justice for all parties on every issue. He assured that the agency is working with complete integrity, and offenders must face the consequences of their actions, focusing primarily on asset tracking.

Mr. Kritsakon stated that the National Office of Buddhism has collaborated with various agencies. Regarding Wat Phutthai Sawan, the abbot did not disrobe voluntarily but due to a Parajika offense, which permanently bars him from re-ordination. Concerning finances, the National Office of Buddhism and all temples utilize QR Code scanning systems where scanned funds go directly into temple accounts. Donation boxes remain only for elderly visitors in certain areas who might donate small change, though using QR codes is highly recommended as it also supports tax deductions. To prevent corruption, the National Office of Buddhism and the NACC have randomly audited access credentials across dozens of high-income temples in Bangkok and surrounding areas. The agency is actively working on preventive measures and innovative solutions to stop future corruption.

Pol. Maj. Gen. Jaroonkiat stated that this case is not unprecedented, as similar events occurred last year. The Central Investigation Bureau and the Royal Thai Police have continuously emphasized these types of cases because they severely impact public trust and faith. Whenever investigative evidence reveals corruption or monastic offenses reaching the level of Parajika, decisive legal action is taken immediately. Although incidents may seem fewer this year, thanks are due to citizens who provided intelligence to the CSD. He emphasized that such evidence is not easily obtained without public support in protecting Buddhism. If anyone observes monks straying off course or misbehaving, they must help protect the institution of Buddhism and not allow wrongdoing monks to go unpunished while exploiting public faith. Last year, the government, the National Office of Buddhism, and related agencies established financial expenditure systems to prevent monks acting as state officials from committing offenses, which showed positive trends. However, as incidents still occur, it remains regrettable, but law enforcement will not overlook it. He urged citizens nationwide to serve as eyes and ears to preserve the Buddhist institution.

When asked if other individuals were involved and why a round table was seized, Acting Pol. Col. Jetniphat explained that regarding prosecution of other individuals, past cases showed that people often had no prior knowledge until they were prosecuted. In this case, if police prematurely announced investigations into specific senior monks or individuals before solid proof was established, it could wrongly tarnish the temple's reputation even if the parties involved were innocent. Therefore, evidence will dictate whether additional individuals (such as in a part 2 or part 3) are implicated, without pre-emptively targeting anyone. Those with clean intentions need not fear investigation. Even when police are tasked with investigating due to multiple complaints—such as the two reports received in this case indicating abnormalities—action must be taken. Yesterday's operation was necessary to clean up the temple by removing improper elements and clutter outside the monk's quarters, including the orange table, which was not part of the criminal evidence. Since the temple contains historical sites and sacred places where visitors check in, attention should focus on constructive aspects rather than the table and chairs. The removal of those items was simply part of clearing clutter out of the temple, and no further action regarding those items is within the police's scope of thought.

Regarding the timeline of the former abbot and the laywoman, Acting Pol. Col. Jetniphat stated that data showed the laywoman entered the temple around 2007 as a lay supporter. Her exact activities were unknown, but she was declared bankrupt in 2019 before being discharged from bankruptcy in 2022. Afterwards, she began acquiring significant assets, including two houses and substantial property, despite having no apparent occupation, with funds flowing to the beloved woman.

Regarding the interrogation of both suspects, Acting Pol. Col. Jetniphat noted that the close laywoman denied all charges, claiming her funds derived from her own business earnings. While that is her legal right to claim, police confirmed financial evidence showing unexplained wealth without a clear occupation, alongside money transfers used to purchase other assets. Meanwhile, Mr. Chot, the former abbot, remains under interrogation; he has denied all charges and has been unable to explain the source of his assets.

From searching the monk's residence, police seized assets belonging to Mr. Chot comprising 290 million baht in bank deposits, 138,309,986 baht in cash, and gold bars and gold jewelry weighing over 1,000 baht-weight valued at over 70 million baht, totaling over 498 million baht in assets from the former monk.

Regarding the assets of Ms. Punyavee, or Sika Ae, police seized property at a residence in Pathum Thani including 3,873,614 baht in cash and 90 baht-weight of gold valued at 6,151,500 baht, totaling 10,025,114 baht.

Additionally, authorities seized 2 land title deeds, 7 bank passbooks, 1 land purchase agreement (totaling 10 items), along with 1 health insurance policy, 6 gold guarantee certificates, 7 gold purchase-sale receipts, and 4 Government Savings Bank lottery tickets, bringing the total value of seized assets to 215,229,847 baht.

Photo : Weeraphat Ratsameerueangrong