Minister-Prisoner-Monk

A former ministery of Thailand has turned from a prisoner to a monk.

On September 19, 2003 Rakkiat Sukthana a former Health Minister of Thailand was sentenced ( in absentia ) by the Supreme Court of Thailand to 15 years in prison for corruption involving an amount of 15 million Bath. He was charged for receiving that amount from a drug traffickig company. After almost 13 months in hiding he was arrested by the police on October 10, 2004 while jogging in a park in Nonthaburi.



The full sentence was commuted twice under royal pardons to seven years and six months. He was finally released on parole on October 29, 2009. He had to report to the local police station every month and obtain permission from the police before travelling out from his province. Shortly after his released, Rakkiat entered monkhood to show his gratitude to the king for reducing his jail term. He vowed not to enter politics again. In January 2010, as a monk, he appreared on TV for a talk show.