A deputy rector of an unnamed Buddhist university in Chiang Mai, who is among 23 suspects wanted by police in a teenage prostitution case, turned himself in to authorities Wednesday.
The 52-year-old deputy rector, whose name was not disclosed, was accused of sleeping with at least five girls, all 13 years old, who worked illegally as prostitutes.
The deputy rector, accompanied by his lawyer, tried to avoid reporters as he arrived at the Chang Pheauk police station in Muang district of Chiang Mai where he met police investigators.
He allegedly committed the offences in the Santitham area and at a dormitory near a technical college in downtown Chiang Mai in the past few months.
The man denied any wrongdoing and insisted he would only testify in court.
The suspect is facing 15 arrest warrants for 15 counts of misconduct of sexually abusing children aged under 15, police said.
Police have found 23 other men who had allegedly bought sex from the same group of underaged girls. Only 10 of them have been caught so far, according to Pol Maj Gen Songtham Alphach, deputy commissioner of Provincial Police Region 5.
One of the girls, 13, was rescued from the sex trade. The girl's parents said she had been lured into prostitution by a female procurer, said Pol Maj Gen Songtham.
The girl told police about her clients and police were now pursuing them, he said.
The 10 suspects arrested include former military officers, well-known businessmen, high-level state officials and officials from educational institutions, said an informed source.
They have been charged with sexually abusing girls aged under 15, said the source.
One of the detained suspects is a former abbot of a well-known Buddhist temple in Chiang Mai, said the source.
On Tuesday, a police investigation team questioned Maj Kriangsak Maiwong, 60, a former military officer attached to a military base in Chiang Mai, who also was among the suspects named in this case.
He denied any wrongdoing and was released on bail after police questioning.