Missing abbot confirms safety after disappearing since March
A former abbot, who had been reported missing in Ayutthaya province since March, appeared at Bang Rak Police Station in Bangkok yesterday, May 5, and confirmed he was safe after leaving monkhood.
The former abbot, 58 year old Sombat Sirisuwanno from Sanam Chai Temple in Ayutthaya, had lost contact with temple staff and relatives on March 17.
According to earlier reports, Sombat left the temple on March 16 to collect his mentally ill son from Khon Kaen province before taking him to stay with his ex-wife in Ratchaburi province.
The driver accompanying him later told police that he dropped Sombat at a petrol station in Saraburi province, where the abbot reportedly continued travelling with another driver towards northern Thailand.
In mid-April, Sombat was reportedly seen walking along a roadside in Tak province before later boarding a coach bus to Phitsanulok province.
The disappearance attracted attention in Ayutthaya, with a businessman operating near Sanam Chai Temple offering a reward of 10,000 baht for information leading to Sombat’s whereabouts. Despite the efforts, he remained missing for several weeks.
Yesterday, officers at Bang Rak Police Station confirmed that Sombat arrived at the station wearing white clothing after leaving monkhood. He requested officers officially record that he was safe.
Sombat reportedly told police that he had been living in roadside forest areas during his disappearance but could no longer endure mosquito bites and harsh living conditions.
The former abbot also informed officers that money of around 100,000 baht belonging to the temple, which he had taken with him before disappearing, had not been used.
Bangkok police later coordinated with investigators from Ayutthaya Police Station, who are overseeing the missing person case. Officers from Ayutthaya subsequently travelled to Bangkok to take Sombat for further questioning regarding the reasons behind his disappearance.
Previous reports about the Ayutthaya abbot disappearance indicated that temple workers and residents considered Sombat a dedicated monk who had worked extensively on the temple’s development and had not previously shown wrongdoings.
Some locals speculated that pressure related to changes in temple management and financial debt may have contributed to his decision to leave. However, police have not confirmed those claims.
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