Monk Caught on Phuket Stealing, Sniffing Glue
By Phuketwan Reporter
Saturday, July 6, 2013
Monk Caught on Phuket Stealing, Sniffing Glue - Phuket Wan
PHUKET: A monk caught sniffing glue and pictured by a security camera stealing from a Phuket convenience store has been defrocked.
Residents near Wat Pra Aram in Thepkasattri Road, Rassada, alerted police to the monk's glue sniffing habits.
Officer kept an eye on the monk and when they were able to confirm the residents' allegations, moved in.
Intercepted at 9pm last night, Chaiyasit Janhtech, 33, said he had been a monk for six years and arrived on Phuket from Pattani on June 29 to visit friends.
He asked the abbot at the Phuket wat to stay for one night and when he failed to meet up with his Patong friends, stayed a little longer.
Security camera footage at a nearby convenience store showed the monk stealing 1000 baht and the wallet of a student whose parents run the store.
The former monk is likely to appear before Phuket Provincial Court on Monday.