If you’re going to dress up as a monk and start scamming donations, it’s perhaps best not to do it at a police station.
That’s this week’s life lesson for 29 year old Wichai Praising, who has been arrested for soliciting donations while impersonating a monk – at the Hua Hin Tourist Police Station.
The Pattaya News reports that Wichai donned monk’s robes and entered the station with donation envelopes and a “certificate” from a local monastery. He told officers the donations were to fund the construction of a bathroom and to pay electricity bills.
The police then collected 430 baht and handed it to the “monk”. It’s not clear what prompted them to then check in with the monastery, but when they did, they were told there was no such fundraising drive underway.
Wichai was arrested at 4pm on Tuesday, August 13, and charged with fraud and unlawfully impersonating a monk to deceive others. He was subsequently found to have carried out the same trick near Somtawin School in Hua Hin, not far from the tourist police station.
During questioning, the suspect admitted that he’s not a monk but thought dressing up as one would make it easier to get money.
SOURCE: The Pattaya News
