Police have found luxury assets worth a total of 100 million baht including a Bentley, Porsche and gold-plated amulets registered under the names of suspected embezzler Apirat Jayankura Na Ayudhya, some of his family members and his partner.
Mr Apirat is suspected of embezzling 190 million baht from Wat Bowon Niwet Vihara in Bangkok and its temples upcountry.
According to the Crime Suppression Division (CSD), Mr Apirat, who was a close friend of Somdet Phra Wannarat, the late abbot of Wat Bowon Niwet, repeatedly transferred money from the temple's bank accounts into his own.
The police investigation initially uncovered a wealth of goods including the two luxury cars as well as a Volvo, BMW, Lexus, cash, multiple bank accounts, designer bags and the expensive amulets.
Of the nine luxury cars, only a few were registered under Mr Apirat's name. Documents show the others belonged to Mr Apirat's family members and a male partner.
Police said they will investigate if those people were involved in the temple embezzlement case.
An initial investigation found that about 80 million baht was stolen from a renovation budget for Wat Rattanawararam and another 10 million baht for expanding Wat Khiri Vihara School.
Mr Apirat was arrested on March 23 at his home in Bangkok. Police found the embezzlement occurred while the late abbot was receiving treatment at Chulalongkorn Hospital for cancer from last December.
He died on March 15.
