The Justice Ministry has ordered the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) to look into a possible connection between the 12-billion-baht Klongchan Credit Union Cooperative embezzlement scandal and Wat Phra Dhammakaya and some of the temple's monks.
The move came after DSI investigators found evidence showing a clear financial link between the cooperative and the temple, said Pol Col Dusadee Arayawuth, deputy permanent secretary for justice, Thursday.
Pol Lt Col Pakorn Sucheewakul, head of the DSI investigation into the case, met with Pol Col Dusadee to discuss a plan to expand the probe that might shed further light on the case.
The Pakorn team replaced the previous investigators who were removed and are now facing investigation themselves for allegedly stalling the probe.
Pol Col Dusadee said investigators were examining a channel in which Supachai Srisupa-aksorn, a former board chairman of the cooperative and a key suspect in the case, had allegedly illegally transferred land ownership from the cooperative to Wat Phra Dhammakaya.
The transfer was made before the Anti-Money Laundering Office (Amlo) began inspecting the cooperative in 2013, he said.
Aside from the land transfer, the DSI team also found that Mr Supachai had operated another credit union cooperative called Mongkol Setthi at Wat Phra Dhammakaya while he served as chairman of the Klongchan credit union, according to a source at the DSI.
The source added that the Klongchan cooperative was popular because it offered higher dividends than other financial institutions.
The deposits were then allegedly siphoned to the Mongkol Setthi, which in turn extended soft loans to the temple followers, the source said.
Close to 500 people had taken out loans of more than 230 million baht from Mongkol Setthi, said the source.
The investigation team discovered that between 2009 and 2012, Mr Supachai had made out three cheques amounting to 46.5 million baht to Mongkol Setthi, the source added.
Mr Supachai was also found to have transferred money to several senior monks at the temple, including its abbot Phra Dhammachayo, the source said.
Mr Supahcai had transferred 225 million baht to the temple abbot, 100 million baht to Phra Wirach, 119 million baht to Phra Palat Wichan, 100 million baht to Phra Montri and 127 million baht to Sathaporn Watthanasirinukul, who owned SW Holding Group located near Wat Phra Dhammakaya, the source added.