Former temple secretary arrested for child assault in Thailand (2025)

A former secretary of a well-known temple’s abbot was apprehended while hiding on a boat, evading charges of assaulting young temple boys and novices. The case emerged after a victim contracted a sexually transmitted disease, prompting the parents to report the incident.

Today, April 6, Police Major General Thirachat Theerachatthamrong directed Police Colonel Phaitoon Khusantia, chief of Division 1, and Police Lieutenant Colonel Chatuporn Tikkaew to arrest 35 year old Sutin (surname withheld) under a Surin provincial court warrant No. 42/2568, dated February 13.

The charges include rape using force and sexual assault of a child under 13. He was arrested on a barge moored at a company’s dock in Tha Ruea district, Ayutthaya province.

Back in April 2020, the older brother of two boys, aged six and nine, who were victims, was ordained at a temple in Sikhoraphum district, Surin province. During this period, Sutin, a distant relative, was already ordained at the same temple, serving as the abbot’s secretary.

The parents frequently brought their sons to the temple during weekends or school holidays, typically dropping them off on Friday evenings and picking them up on Sunday evenings. However, they stopped when the older brother left the monkhood.

In October of the same year, the parents noticed the younger boy, known as Child A, frequently scratching his bottom. Upon inspection, they found sores and took him to the hospital. Medical tests revealed he had contracted anal warts, a condition typically found in adults and possibly indicative of sexual abuse.

The parents questioned both boys, discovering that Monk Sutin had lured them to his quarters on multiple occasions. They promptly filed a report with Sikhoraphum Police Station, leading to an arrest warrant. Sutin quickly disrobed and fled the area.

The arrest team later tracked Sutin to Ayutthaya province, where he had been hiding on a boat anchored in the middle of the Pa Sak River. They navigated through the forest and rowed a boat to reach him, ultimately arresting him, reported KhaoSod.

During questioning, Sutin confessed and admitted to sexually assaulting a novice at the same temple, bringing the known victims to three. He was handed over to Sikhoraphum Police Station for further legal proceedings.

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