Ex-monk Wirapol (Luang Pu Nenkham) withdrew Bt300m

[Acharn]

The Thai money grab is on.

Not only "the Thai." If the DSI gets American authorities interested I have little doubt they (the Americans) will be only too happy to seize any money that is in places they can get to. The problem for DSI will then be to get the Americans to share the money with them. American police have become very adept at seizing money and other valuable property even in cases where there is no arrest. It's a major source of income for some municipal police departments, and in some states allows the police to buy their tanks, bullet-proof vests, goodies for S.W.A.T. teams, without arousing a tax[ayer revolt. So far they haven't robbed so many people that many Americans are even aware of what is going on, but the awareness is building.

[EyesWideOpen]

Allow him to withdraw 300 million and then freeze his accounts. Well done.

I suppose he needs pocket money for his US stay and more importantly the money may not all actually be his.

He will lose potential friends very quickly if he loses their money. We know the DSI is suspect and incompetent but there could be method in this particular madness.

.....of course he needs pocket money...... you been to McDonald's lately ?????

up til now , what better type of non suspect person could you have to watch over your money than a senior monk? I would think that it is a very big face loss for the DSI to admit that they will consider freezing his accounts now, after the fact. I think that a lot of higher ups have got their fingers in this cookie jar, and the 300m has probably worked its way back to the rightful owners by now....

Phewwww big sighs of releif being sounded in some corners...... now only if his mouth is kept shut.... but the egg is starting to show cracks now and it may be very hard to keep everything intact, as it starts to come apart.

Not so sure about things coming apart. Some very high up are involved in this money laundering, so this case will fade away. Just look at the case about the imported super cars which were evading taxes. That story has done the classic Thai fade away, and this case will be the same. Either the 300 million baht has gone quietly back to its original owners, or the DSI is hands down the stupidest group of " investigators" in the entire world.

[Artisi]

Amazing Thailand, apologises to TAT.

[pizzachang]

To extradite this fellow from the USA, Thailand will have to first issue a warrant for a (universally recognized) criminal act. Like murder, rape, theft(large amounts). Religious law likely will not get extradition. He may also get to go before a judge in the US to fight the extradition and get them to believe he is being persecuted for religious reasons - rich religious figures are more common in the Western world and 'money' is bigger business than 'goodness'.

[stoli]

He will now be opening the Thai Investment Firm on Wall Street and courting possible investors helping to make them even richer. Monk Ponzi at your service. He has done well, don't you think?

[happysoul]

All this story makes me want to comment with numbers only : 5 555 555 555

[SOTIRIOS]

...what about the millions of USD he bragged about............and the 100 Mercedes.....

.after so many weeks again....throw out a few crumbs....and 'it will all go away'.....

[Thai at Heart]

Where officially are donations to temples supposed to be banked? Surely not the private accounts of the monks?

Do temples have to set up accounts?

It wasn't a temple, it was a monastery. Monasteries are not subject to the same strict rules and inspections as temples.

Do either by law have to set up "company" accounts or do donations just enter nirvana on the way through?

[slapout]

This DSI group seem to be the kiss of death to any investigation they take over or get involved with. Was/is it's staff pulled from the lower end of the 'perment inactive' seats, given this assignment/position due to retirement in less than a year?

The way this group operates, they should be divided up into groups, sent on international junkets to locate criminals who have fled Thailand, If they run true to form, they would never find their way home and would have trouble understanding turning themselves in to " lost and found ".

[rametindallas]

Oh, look, the horse has bolted! Quick, close the barn door!

Easy to think this is incompetence but they needed to get the money out because

it was being laundered for 'important' people.

How many other 'monasteries' are involved in this 'laundering' business? It seems

that when one puts on the orange robes they become invisible to the authorities.

[Thai at Heart]

Oh, look, the horse has bolted! Quick, close the barn door!

Easy to think this is incompetence but they needed to get the money out because

it was being laundered for 'important' people.

How many other 'monasteries' are involved in this 'laundering' business? It seems

that when one puts on the orange robes they become invisible to the authorities.

Thais aren't big into horses. They are used to buffaloes who have to pushed or pulled through the door.

It's an important cultural issue... no one seems to understand that horses and people bolt for the door.

[rbrooks]

Just more embarrassment for the broken Thai system. I suspect this guy's days are numbered and will soon meet a swift form of Thai Taxi driver justice.

[ginjag]

Where officially are donations to temples supposed to be banked? Surely not the private accounts of the monks?

Do temples have to set up accounts?

It wasn't a temple, it was a monastery. Monasteries are not subject to the same strict rules and inspections as temples.

That's interesting. I had always just assumed they were one and the same.

One thing that jumps out about this monk, didn't seem to spend much time meditating-because he can't have been there doing his holy work.

[khaowong1]

To extradite this fellow from the USA, Thailand will have to first issue a warrant for a (universally recognized) criminal act. Like murder, rape, theft(large amounts). Religious law likely will not get extradition. He may also get to go before a judge in the US to fight the extradition and get them to believe he is being persecuted for religious reasons - rich religious figures are more common in the Western world and 'money' is bigger business than 'goodness'.

Your right.. The US isn't going to extradite him just because the Thai authorities want to talk to him. They have to have some real evidence of a criminal act. Having 10 million in your bank account isn't exactly a criminal act. They also haven't produced the DNA on his supposed son yet. And the charges of having sex with a minor at this point is; he said - she said. All these charges have to go through a Thai court. So far it's just going from one office to another. From where he lives in California, it's just a hop skip and jump to Mexico. So he may already be gone. And also like you said, IF he goes in front of a US judge, he could roll out the religious persecution angle and if the judge believes it, that's all she wrote. We're very big on religious freedoms here. And, if he's got any brains, he already has another passport from Venesuela or somewhere. Possibly Montenegro. I think you can buy a Diplomatic passport there for about 25,000 bucks. From what I can gather here in the US, all the Buddhist monks are either shying away from talking about him or all the senior monks are rushing to his place in California looking for advice, financial advice.

[Thai at Heart]

To extradite this fellow from the USA, Thailand will have to first issue a warrant for a (universally recognized) criminal act. Like murder, rape, theft(large amounts). Religious law likely will not get extradition. He may also get to go before a judge in the US to fight the extradition and get them to believe he is being persecuted for religious reasons - rich religious figures are more common in the Western world and 'money' is bigger business than 'goodness'.

Your right.. The US isn't going to extradite him just because the Thai authorities want to talk to him. They have to have some real evidence of a criminal act. Having 10 million in your bank account isn't exactly a criminal act. They also haven't produced the DNA on his supposed son yet. And the charges of having sex with a minor at this point is; he said - she said. All these charges have to go through a Thai court. So far it's just going from one office to another. From where he lives in California, it's just a hop skip and jump to Mexico. So he may already be gone. And also like you said, IF he goes in front of a US judge, he could roll out the religious persecution angle and if the judge believes it, that's all she wrote. We're very big on religious freedoms here. And, if he's got any brains, he already has another passport from Venesuela or somewhere. Possibly Montenegro. I think you can buy a Diplomatic passport there for about 25,000 bucks. From what I can gather here in the US, all the Buddhist monks are either shying away from talking about him or all the senior monks are rushing to his place in California looking for advice, financial advice.

Religious persecution of a Buddhist in Thailand? That one might not fly.

[annabel]

How the hell did he pull out 297 M without an inch of doubt from any of these banks that held the accounts...?? Why were the accounts not already frozen ....DUH???what is wrong here...?? And where ...?? WHERE was the money transferred to...? Another DUH...?? Jeezz... ! total lunacy and corruption to say the least ,....!

[Thai at Heart]

How the hell did he pull out 297 M without an inch of doubt from any of these banks that held the accounts...?? Why were the accounts not already frozen ....DUH???what is wrong here...?? And where ...?? WHERE was the money transferred to...? Another DUH...?? Jeezz... ! total lunacy and corruption to say the least ,....!

Try to move 300mn cash out of the country.

Who permitted these transfers?

[annabel]

How the hell did he pull out 297 M without an inch of doubt from any of these banks that held the accounts...?? Why were the accounts not already frozen ....DUH???what is wrong here...?? And where ...?? WHERE was the money transferred to...? Another DUH...?? Jeezz... ! total lunacy and corruption to say the least ,....!

Try to move 300mn cash out of the country.

Who permitted these transfers?

EXACTLY WHAT I AM SAYING.....

[khaowong1]

To extradite this fellow from the USA, Thailand will have to first issue a warrant for a (universally recognized) criminal act. Like murder, rape, theft(large amounts). Religious law likely will not get extradition. He may also get to go before a judge in the US to fight the extradition and get them to believe he is being persecuted for religious reasons - rich religious figures are more common in the Western world and 'money' is bigger business than 'goodness'.

Your right.. The US isn't going to extradite him just because the Thai authorities want to talk to him. They have to have some real evidence of a criminal act. Having 10 million in your bank account isn't exactly a criminal act. They also haven't produced the DNA on his supposed son yet. And the charges of having sex with a minor at this point is; he said - she said. All these charges have to go through a Thai court. So far it's just going from one office to another. From where he lives in California, it's just a hop skip and jump to Mexico. So he may already be gone. And also like you said, IF he goes in front of a US judge, he could roll out the religious persecution angle and if the judge believes it, that's all she wrote. We're very big on religious freedoms here. And, if he's got any brains, he already has another passport from Venesuela or somewhere. Possibly Montenegro. I think you can buy a Diplomatic passport there for about 25,000 bucks. From what I can gather here in the US, all the Buddhist monks are either shying away from talking about him or all the senior monks are rushing to his place in California looking for advice, financial advice.

Religious persecution of a Buddhist in Thailand? That one might not fly.

Maybe TAH, but you have to remember, the US is by and large a Christian nation.. They know virtually nothing about any other religion. All he has to do is convince a judge. I don't know how many times I've walked into a Walmart, Barnes and Noble or someother store here in the US in my orange robes and been asked if I'm a muslim imam. Americans don't know. Like I said, all he has to do is convince some judge, convince the judge that as a Buddhist monk with some money, that was donated to him by his devout followers, rather than living in poverty in a mud hut in the jungle, will get him persucuted. It could very well work. I'm just saying.

[Thai at Heart]

To extradite this fellow from the USA, Thailand will have to first issue a warrant for a (universally recognized) criminal act. Like murder, rape, theft(large amounts). Religious law likely will not get extradition. He may also get to go before a judge in the US to fight the extradition and get them to believe he is being persecuted for religious reasons - rich religious figures are more common in the Western world and 'money' is bigger business than 'goodness'.

Your right.. The US isn't going to extradite him just because the Thai authorities want to talk to him. They have to have some real evidence of a criminal act. Having 10 million in your bank account isn't exactly a criminal act. They also haven't produced the DNA on his supposed son yet. And the charges of having sex with a minor at this point is; he said - she said. All these charges have to go through a Thai court. So far it's just going from one office to another. From where he lives in California, it's just a hop skip and jump to Mexico. So he may already be gone. And also like you said, IF he goes in front of a US judge, he could roll out the religious persecution angle and if the judge believes it, that's all she wrote. We're very big on religious freedoms here. And, if he's got any brains, he already has another passport from Venesuela or somewhere. Possibly Montenegro. I think you can buy a Diplomatic passport there for about 25,000 bucks. From what I can gather here in the US, all the Buddhist monks are either shying away from talking about him or all the senior monks are rushing to his place in California looking for advice, financial advice.

Religious persecution of a Buddhist in Thailand? That one might not fly.

Maybe TAH, but you have to remember, the US is by and large a Christian nation.. They know virtually nothing about any other religion. All he has to do is convince a judge. I don't know how many times I've walked into a Walmart, Barnes and Noble or someother store here in the US in my orange robes and been asked if I'm a muslim imam. Americans don't know. Like I said, all he has to do is convince some judge, convince the judge that as a Buddhist monk with some money, that was donated to him by his devout followers, rather than living in poverty in a mud hut in the jungle, will get him persucuted. It could very well work. I'm just saying.

Claiming persecution is normally reserved for being a minority within the country. I am sure there is someone capable of telling the judge that Thailand is 95% Buddhist.

[Thai at Heart]

To extradite this fellow from the USA, Thailand will have to first issue a warrant for a (universally recognized) criminal act. Like murder, rape, theft(large amounts). Religious law likely will not get extradition. He may also get to go before a judge in the US to fight the extradition and get them to believe he is being persecuted for religious reasons - rich religious figures are more common in the Western world and 'money' is bigger business than 'goodness'.

Your right.. The US isn't going to extradite him just because the Thai authorities want to talk to him. They have to have some real evidence of a criminal act. Having 10 million in your bank account isn't exactly a criminal act. They also haven't produced the DNA on his supposed son yet. And the charges of having sex with a minor at this point is; he said - she said. All these charges have to go through a Thai court. So far it's just going from one office to another. From where he lives in California, it's just a hop skip and jump to Mexico. So he may already be gone. And also like you said, IF he goes in front of a US judge, he could roll out the religious persecution angle and if the judge believes it, that's all she wrote. We're very big on religious freedoms here. And, if he's got any brains, he already has another passport from Venesuela or somewhere. Possibly Montenegro. I think you can buy a Diplomatic passport there for about 25,000 bucks. From what I can gather here in the US, all the Buddhist monks are either shying away from talking about him or all the senior monks are rushing to his place in California looking for advice, financial advice.

Religious persecution of a Buddhist in Thailand? That one might not fly.

Maybe TAH, but you have to remember, the US is by and large a Christian nation.. They know virtually nothing about any other religion. All he has to do is convince a judge. I don't know how many times I've walked into a Walmart, Barnes and Noble or someother store here in the US in my orange robes and been asked if I'm a muslim imam. Americans don't know. Like I said, all he has to do is convince some judge, convince the judge that as a Buddhist monk with some money, that was donated to him by his devout followers, rather than living in poverty in a mud hut in the jungle, will get him persucuted. It could very well work. I'm just saying.

Claiming persecution is normally reserved for being a minority within the country. I am sure there is someone capable of telling the judge that Thailand is 95% Buddhist.