BANGKOK: A voice resembling that of Phra Dhammachayo, the former abbot of Wat Phra Dhammakaya who has not appeared publicly for nearly a decade, was heard during a religious ceremony broadcast by the temple on Thursday (Nov 5), renewing public interest in his whereabouts.
The development comes months after prosecutors discontinued criminal proceedings against the former abbot over alleged money laundering and receiving stolen property linked to the Klongchan Credit Union Cooperative scandal. The case was terminated in March after its 15-year limitation period expired.
Familiar voice heard during religious ceremony
Wat Phra Dhammakaya’s Corporate Communications Office livestreamed a ceremony on Facebook featuring clockwise circumambulation, chanting of the Dhammachakka, meditation, prayers and the spreading of loving-kindness.
During part of the broadcast, viewers heard a voice that closely resembled Phra Dhammachayo delivering a Buddhist sermon.
The speaker's tone and use of the expression “na ja”, a phrase closely associated with the former abbot, drew particular attention among his followers.
However, Phra Dhammachayo did not appear on screen at any point during the sermon.
It remains unclear whether the temple played an earlier recording of his teachings or whether the audio was recorded recently. No information has been provided to establish when the sermon was delivered.
The YouTube channel GBNUS LIVE also published a video combining still images with audio of a sermon attributed to Phra Dhammachayo. The recording dates of the images and audio have not been independently established.
The broadcast has revived questions about the former abbot, whose whereabouts have remained unconfirmed since authorities attempted to arrest him almost 10 years ago.
Klongchan cooperative scandal led to criminal investigation
Phra Dhammachayo became the subject of a major criminal investigation following allegations of financial irregularities involving the Klongchan Credit Union Cooperative.
Investigators examining the cooperative's financial transactions identified cheques issued by Supachai Srisupa-aksorn, its former chairman, to various individuals and organisations.
The financial trail included donations associated with Phra Dhammachayo and Wat Phra Dhammakaya, prompting the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) to examine the former abbot's involvement.
The DSI investigated allegations of conspiracy to launder money, joint money laundering and receiving stolen property.
As part of its investigation, the department summoned Phra Dhammachayo for questioning on three occasions: April 8, April 25 and May 16, 2016.
He failed to appear before investigators on each occasion.
His legal representatives and Wat Phra Dhammakaya maintained that he was suffering from health problems and was unable to travel to acknowledge the allegations.
The DSI, however, insisted that the former abbot was required to enter the criminal justice process.
Following his failure to respond to the summonses, the Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant on May 17, 2016, at the DSI's request.
Authorities subsequently made several attempts to locate and apprehend him, including operations at Wat Phra Dhammakaya.
Their efforts encountered resistance from large numbers of temple followers who gathered to oppose the authorities' entry into the compound.
Article 44 operation failed to locate former abbot
The confrontation escalated in February 2017 when the government of then-prime minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha invoked Article 44 of the interim constitution to designate Wat Phra Dhammakaya and surrounding areas as a controlled zone.
The measure allowed security personnel and investigators to carry out an extensive operation to search for Phra Dhammachayo.
Large numbers of officers were deployed around the temple, where they encountered resistance from followers gathered inside and outside the compound.
The operation attracted considerable public attention as authorities searched multiple locations within the temple grounds.
Despite the extensive searches, officers failed to locate or arrest the former abbot.
His whereabouts remained unknown after the operation was brought to an end.
Phra Dhammachayo also lost his senior ecclesiastical rank in March 2017. The royal order removing his rank took effect on March 4, following his failure to surrender under the arrest warrant.
The removal concerned his ecclesiastical title and did not constitute an order requiring him to leave the monkhood.
Since then, reports concerning the former abbot have surfaced periodically, but there has been no confirmed public appearance or reliable information establishing his location.
Prosecutors terminated criminal case in March 2026
A significant development emerged on March 26, 2026, when the DSI disclosed that it had received notification of a decision by prosecutors to discontinue proceedings against Phra Dhammachayo and another suspect.
The notification, dated March 20, came from the Office of the Special Prosecutor for Special Cases 4.
It confirmed that proceedings involving allegations of conspiracy to launder money, joint money laundering and receiving stolen property had been terminated because the statutory limitation period had expired.
Although the Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant in 2016, the 15-year limitation period was not calculated from that date.
Instead, the period began when the alleged offences occurred.
According to the DSI, the relevant period was calculated from the final cheque transaction in 2011, meaning the 15-year deadline expired in 2026.
Despite efforts to locate Phra Dhammachayo following the issuance of the arrest warrant, investigators were unable to bring him before the court for prosecution within the legally prescribed period.
The expiry of the limitation period consequently ended the authorities' ability to pursue the specified criminal charges.
The prosecutors' decision was not an acquittal or a court ruling that Phra Dhammachayo had committed no offence. It meant that criminal proceedings on those charges could no longer continue because the statutory deadline had passed.
The termination of the criminal case also did not automatically bring all related legal proceedings to an end.
The Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO) has continued separate civil proceedings concerning assets linked to the wider investigation.
Former abbot's whereabouts remain unconfirmed
Phra Dhammachayo, now 82, has not made a confirmed public appearance since the authorities' unsuccessful attempts to apprehend him.
The November 5 broadcast has therefore attracted renewed attention, particularly because it featured a voice resembling his without showing him participating in the ceremony.
Questions remain over whether the sermon was recorded recently or was an earlier recording played during the religious proceedings.
Nearly a decade after the 2016 arrest warrant and the extensive temple searches in 2017, the former abbot's location remains unconfirmed.
Although the money-laundering and receiving-stolen-property case was terminated in March 2026, the latest audio has provided no conclusive evidence that Phra Dhammachayo has returned to public life. - The Nation/ANN
