Cult horror: 32 additional bodies discovered in Phichit temple
Monk leading the cult says the cadavers were donated by followers and were used to teach children concentration and to develop their psychic powers
The authorities found another 32 human cadavers at a temple in Phichit on Tuesday, bringing the total number of bodies found at three locations in two provinces to 85.
The sites are connected to a controversial cult led by a monk who allegedly used the bodies to teach followers meditation and dharma.
Pol Lt-Colonel Inchatchai Ruangchaisivavet, deputy commander of Pho Thale Police Station, led a team of officers to check Wat Pa Sriwilai in Bang Mun Nak district and found the bodies there.
Police and relevant officials had on Saturday found 41 bodies at the Nakhon Chaiborwon monastic centre in Phichit’s Pho Thale district.
These discoveries come after 12 bodies were found at a monastic centre in Kamphaeng Phet’s Khanu Woralaksaburi district on Wednesday (November 20).
The investigation in Kamphaeng Phet was prompted by a Facebook page claiming the monastic centre used donated bodies to teach dharma and enhance their psychic powers by having them “scan” the corpses.
Following the discovery, Phra Acharn Fon admitted on Saturday that he used bodies to help children develop concentration and mindfulness.
On Tuesday, Thongchai Khimmakthong, chief of Bang Mun Nak district, led police, public health officials and local leaders
to check Wat Pa Sriwilai. He said this temple was connected to the monastic centre in Pho Thale district. There, police found 32 bodies in huts reportedly used by dharma practitioners for meditation purposes.
Police said the Phichit Buddhism Office would be notified to investigate the temple further. For now, the temple faces charges under the Graveyard and Crematorium Act for improper handling and disposal of bodies.
Meanwhile, DNA tests will be conducted on the bodies to identify them and then the dead persons’ relatives will be contacted to arrange proper burial or cremation.
