Phra Bat Nampu ex-abbot claims designing Petronas Towers under stolen identity
Family of identity theft victim demands justice amid embezzlement probe
An ex-abbot of Phra Bat Nampu Temple admitted to stealing the identity of a friend in order to avoid military conscription and work illegally in Malaysia, falsely claiming to be a designer of the Petronas Twin Towers.
Officers from the Crime Suppression Division (CSD) and the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) arrested the former abbot of Phra Bat Nampu, Kriangkrai “George” Phetkaew, who had been posing as Alongkot Ponmuk, along with a spiritual medium, Sakesan “Bee” Subsuebsakun, yesterday, August 26, in connection with alleged embezzlement of donations.
In addition to the donation scandal, a Channel 3 news team uncovered evidence that the ex-abbot had stolen the identity of a man named Alongkot Ponmuk. The victim’s identification number was also used in all of the financial transactions carried out by the former abbot.
The media had previously suspected Kriangkrai of using the stolen identity to evade compulsory military service, but this awaited confirmation from both officials and the former abbot himself.
During questioning yesterday, the ex-abbot denied misappropriating donations intended for AIDS patients, insisting that he had sufficient evidence to prove his innocence. However, he admitted to identity theft, claiming that Alongkot had been a close friend of his in Khon Kaen.
According to the ex-abbot, he was born Kriangkrai “George” Phetkaew in Khon Kaen province in 1960. He studied at Kaen Nakhon Wittayalai School and later attempted, unsuccessfully, to obtain a vocational certificate from Ban Krang Agricultural Vocational School.
He stated that he was called up for military conscription in 1981 but failed to report for duty. Instead, he crossed the border illegally into Malaysia, where he claimed to have been involved in designing the Petronas Twin Towers.
He explained that he returned to Thailand in 1986 with a group of Buddhist pilgrims and entered the monkhood on March 1 that year. After moving from Lam Narai Temple to Phra Bat Nampu Temple, he assumed the identity of Alongkot Ponmuk to avoid punishment for evading conscription.
Alongkot’s son publicly stated that he never knew the ex-abbot personally and that his family had no involvement in the donation campaigns or alleged fraud. He has since filed a complaint against the former abbot for creating and using counterfeit documents.
ThaiRath reported today, August 27, that the spiritual medium, Bee, also denied all allegations. Both suspects were taken to a detention room at the CIB office at around 3am after being questioned for more than 24 hours. They both reportedly refused to speak to the media and appeared exhausted.
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