Ex-Abbot Yaem does not make a deposit in the temple fund scandal

Ekkapoj briefly spoke to reporters and unveiled that he met Yaem during his ordination in the temple in 2018. At the request of Yaem, he admitted that he regularly transferred large money sums – often in millions of baht – to Aranyawan. He claimed that he did not know the source or the purpose of the funds and received no compensation for his actions.

When asked whether he still respected the former abbot, Ekkapoj answered openly: “Well, it is every man for himself” before he was led away by the authorities.

Reporters have learned that the investigators are now examining the financial lane between Yaem and Aranyawan intensively.

There are indications that Yaem has broadcast large sums in the range of hundreds of thousands of up to several million baht per transaction to Aranyawan between 2020 and 2024.

These transfers were either carried out or camouflaged directly via bank accounts, with Temple monks being inserted into automated cashier machines. The total value of the transactions is estimated at 300 million baht.

A deeper examination showed that Yaem handed over 80 million baht to Aranyawan in just one month in 2023.

Further inquiries revealed that Yaem not only led temple remedies to Aranyawan, but also moved money into his personal accounts and later referred it to the closure of employees. Part of this money was said to be used for the purchase of luxury vehicles, which were then “donated” for personal use.

The investigators also examine an additional suspicious center flow, including a transfer of 200 million baht to Ekkapoj and another 60 million baht, which are due to a male employee living in the temple.

The investigation of this extensive financial network continues because the authorities work to uncover the full extent of what they are the focus of a multi -layer embezzlement around the former abbot.