Foreign man found sleeping in monk attire on Pattaya Beach
Concerned locals and tourists alerted the Pattaya police to the presence of an unidentified foreign man sleeping on Pattaya Beach at around 3.40am today.
The man, who was dressed in a monk’s robe and a white shirt, was found lying on the sand. Upon closer inspection, police discovered he was also wearing white pants.
When questioned, the man was incoherent, leaving the police puzzled. A search of his monk shoulder bag yielded no illegal items. Subsequently, officers took him into custody for further investigation at the Pattaya Police Station.
The police discovered that the man had no travel documents for entering Thailand, nor did he possess a certificate of ordination from any temple. To unravel the mystery of his identity, the police are working with an interpreter but his origin and purpose remain unclear as he continues to be largely incoherent.
Preecha Intarasorn, a 46 year old local, shared his account with The Pattaya News. He explained that he and other beachgoers were enjoying the night when they saw the foreign man, dressed as a monk, emerge from Walking Street. The man then walked to the beach, changed into white clothes, laid down a monk’s robe, and lay down on it.
Preecha expressed his belief that the man was not a genuine monk and reported the incident to the police to protect the sanctity of Buddhism, especially since many foreign tourists had witnessed the incident. He urged the police to take serious action to prevent any potential damage to the religion’s image, reported Pattaya News.
In related news, a report from a private company in Nong Suea, Pathum Thani, prompted an investigation into a group of men dressed as monks who had been gathering at the company’s private location. The Pathum Thani Office of Buddhism received the complaint and coordinated with relevant agencies to conduct a field inspection at the 20-rai location.
