Temple thieves steal Buddha finials and replica footprint
Thieves stole brass Buddha finials, religious statues, and a prized meditation cave footprint from Wat Tham Kunchon Rat Rangsan in Ratchaburi's Pak Tho district, with police investigating a temple assistant suspected of involvement.
RATCHABURI — On May 14, 2026, thieves stole brass religious artefacts and temple property from a Buddhist temple, including brass finials from Buddha statues and a large replica Buddha footprint kept inside a cave used for meditation, monks said.
The thefts were reported at Wat Tham Kunchon Rat Rangsan in Pak Tho district, where monks discovered that brass decorations and valuable temple items had gradually disappeared from several buildings across the hilltop temple complex.
Phra Athikan Phanuphong Puriyano, abbot of the temple, said brass finials from more than 10 Buddha statues had been removed or cut away. Older Buddha statues inside the temple had also been damaged, while smaller brass Buddha figures placed at the base of a shrine had disappeared entirely.
The thieves also stole electrical wiring, circuit boards, power sockets, two air-conditioning units, ceiling fan blades and CCTV cameras from the temple grounds, the abbot said.
Among the missing items was a large brass replica Buddha footprint installed more than 10 years ago inside a cave used by Buddhist worshippers for meditation and prayer. Water naturally dripped onto the footprint from stalactites and stalagmites inside the cave, making it one of the temple's most revered sites.
The abbot said the loss of the footprint was particularly painful because it had been created through donations and religious devotion from local worshippers.
He said he believed the thieves had gradually cut the brass artefacts into smaller pieces for resale because some items were too large to remove intact.
The temple houses only three monks, and the abbot said one section of the grounds had been left under the care of two monks, one of whom had fallen ill before the thefts were discovered.
Police were notified two days earlier and are investigating possible involvement by a temple assistant after pieces of cut brass allegedly linked to the stolen footprint were found in the person's possession.
The suspect reportedly claimed the abbot had authorised the removal, but the abbot denied this and said he believed the individual may also have been connected to the disappearance of other temple property.
The abbot said the temple would continue restoration efforts while authorities pursued legal action.
