Police arrested a 45 year old Buddhist monk for allegedly getting high on methamphetamine at a temple in the north eastern province of Buriram. The monk allegedly told police that a follower gave him the drugs as a merit gift and convinced him to take it.
Local police say they received a complaint from the Baan Kok Mueng temple’s abbot claiming that a monk at the temple was acting suspiciously and that the monk could be involved in illegal activities.
Police investigated the claims and had the monk do a drug test. The monk tested positive for drugs and was then forced to the leave the monkhood.
His explanation to police was that a follower had offered him the drugs, as well as the equipment to take the drugs, as a merit gift.
But the man had a history of drug use and apparently became a monk to start a new life. He had been…
