A local youth from Songkhla Province, Thailand, apparently dissatisfied with the way a previous case of temple property damage was handled, recently returned to the temple for revenge. Inside the stupa, he covered the Buddha statue's robe with a pair of underwear and urinated, shocking the monks and worshippers.
According to local media reports, the incident took place on August 18. A devotee at Wat Sra Khet in the Bo Yang area of Songkhla detected the incident and informed the media and relevant authorities, uploading the situation to Facebook and drawing public concern.
In addition, signs of damage were found on the stupa’s platform, which the temple believes may have been caused when the perpetrator climbed to the upper part of the stupa. The temple has preliminarily identified the suspect as a local youth who previously vandalized the temple.
The monk of Wat Sra Khet, Phra Arthachai Prinyano, revealed that about two months ago, this youth had slept inside the stupa.
He said that around 5:00 p.m. that day, as the temple prepared to close the stupa, they asked the young man to leave and informed him that the stupa was not a place to stay.
After the incident, Phra Arthachai reported it to the Songkhla Police Station.
He said police informed him at the time that due to lack of evidence, they could not prosecute the individual for theft, but they were still pursuing legal action for property destruction and intimidation.
It is reported that the man has since been released. The temple believes the latest incident is the man returning to vandalize the temple again to show that he is “back.”
Phra Arthachai stated that the latest incident occurred around 5:00 p.m. that day, when the man placed a pair of underwear over the Buddha's head and robe and urinated inside the hall where the Buddha statue is enshrined.
He admitted that seeing such behavior deeply shocked him.
Underwear covers the Buddha's head.
Although the temple abbot does not wish for the incident to escalate or to continue pursuing legal responsibility, hoping the matter will be resolved peacefully,
Phra Arthachai has still requested police to inspect the temple and step up security.
Phra Arthachai has still requested police to inspect the temple and step up security.
He said that because he is responsible for opening and closing the temple and making regular rounds, he is worried about his own safety, especially since it is reported that the suspect previously owned weapons, making the temple even more concerned about the possibility of monks facing security threats.
Devotee exposed urination inside stupa after smelling strong odor
A witness from the temple said that when he entered the stupa to store items and was preparing to turn off the lights and close the temple doors, he suddenly noticed a strong smell of urine.
He then searched around the stupa and finally found the source of the urine, discovering someone had urinated inside the stupa.
The devotee then took out his phone to take photos as evidence and reported the incident to the authorities, requesting them to investigate and strengthen the temple’s internal security.