PATTAYA, Thailand — Authorities in Pattaya have arrested an 82-year-old man posing as a monk after he rented a townhouse to set up an unauthorized temple and was seen driving a car to solicit alms, prompting complaints from locals.
The incident unfolded at 5:30 a.m. on October 29, when police investigators, local administrative officers, and volunteers raided the area near Rai Vanasin Market in Soi Siam Country Club, following reports from residents of a man acting inappropriately as a monk and soliciting alms while seated in a car rather than walking the traditional route.
Upon inspection, the suspect, identified as Sak—or Sutthasak Chantarothorn, 82—admitted he had been living in the Pattaya area for about a year and had opened the townhouse as his own temple. Inside, authorities found the space set up for rituals and even discovered half-drunk beer in a refrigerator, which he claimed belonged to another “monk” living there.
Sak was taken to the abbot of Wat Sutthawas, Phra Maha Thaworn Thana-waro, who confirmed the man was not a legitimate monk and ordered him to remove his saffron robes immediately. Authorities are proceeding with legal action for impersonating a monk and operating an unauthorized temple, emphasizing that such actions harm the reputation of the Buddhist community.
