Former abbot hit with fresh conviction

Former abbot hit with fresh conviction

The former abbot of Wat Sam Phraya, Phra Phrom Dilok, has received an additional eight-month prison sentence, suspended for one year, in connection with the embezzlement of a five-million-baht budget allocated for a Buddhist education project.

Four former National Office of Buddhism (NOB) officials, including its ex-director Phanom Sornsilp, were each sentenced to 18 months in prison by the Central Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Cases.

The sentences were subsequently commuted because they had cooperated withe the investigation.

Phanom, together with former Ang Thong provincial Buddhism office director, Kaew Chittakob, and office staffer Pornpen Kititharangkura received a reduced term of 12 months. The director of the Lampang provincial Buddhism office, Boonlert Sopha, was handed nine months.

They and the abbot were found guilty of dereliction of duty and conspiring to misappropriate money set aside for the Phra Pariyatti Dhamma School in the 2014 fiscal year. The 75-year-old ex-abbot, also known by his layman's name, Euan Klinsalee, faced a jail term and a 12,000 baht fine.

However, because he was adjudged to have contributed to the development of Buddhism and had never been jailed, the judges agreed to suspend his jail term and cut the fine to 8,000 baht.

The court last year sentenced him to six years in jail on a separate charge of money laundering in this five-million-baht embezzlement case. He was found guilty of spending the money on a building project.

His secretary Phra Atthakit Sophon was sentenced to three years in jail.

Both appealed and are on bail.

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