Thai prosecutors charge controversial abbot of powerful Buddhist sect over money laundering

Thailand’s attorney general said on Wednesday it would charge the abbot of a powerful Buddhist sect and four others suspected of money laundering in the latest twist of a long-running saga that has divided Thai Buddhism.

“Prosecutors have agreed to charge Phra Dhammachayao of Dhammakaya temple on charges of conspiracy to launder money, money laundering and receiving stolen goods,” Somnuek Siangkong, spokesman of the Office of the Attorney General, told Reuters.

Thailand’s Department of Special Investigation in 2015 summoned Phra Dhammachayo for questioning after his temple was accused of receiving more than 1 billion baht (US$28 million) of embezzled funds.

Prosecutors in charge of the case have postponed a decision to charge the monk four times while Phra Dhammachayo has failed to show up for police questioning, citing ill health.

The controversy over Phra Dhammachayo, 72, has fuelled a feud between traditionalists in Thai Buddhism and those who support more modern sects.