Police arrested a 23-year-old monk named Phra Porndanai at a temple in Bang Pakong district, Chachoengsao, Thailand, on Wednesday, charging him with animal cruelty for allegedly killing numerous cats.
The Watchdog Thailand Foundation’s Rattiya Tiaotrakul filed a complaint against the monk, claiming he had posted a message on Facebook offering to find new homes for brown kittens but later requested cats of any color. Rattiya also alleged that she had video evidence of the monk crushing and eating cats.
Other monks at the temple claimed that Porndanai had a habit of adopting cats but that they would soon disappear, with some monks witnessing him killing cats. Porndanai claimed that he killed the cats because they were causing a disturbance. He was defrocked and charged after being taken to the Bang Pakong district police station.
One of the cat donors, Porntharat, gave five cats to Porndanai but was never given pictures of them. She was shocked to learn about the killings.
