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The Supreme Court Thursday upheld the lower court's ruling handing a 50year imprisonment term to a former Buddhist abbot of Nakhon Pathom's Wat Sampran, on charges of raping and molesting nine hilltribe girls under the age of 15.

Chamlong Polseu, 65, once a popular spiritual leader known by his clerical name Phra Pawana Phuttho, was sentenced to 160 years in prison for raping and molesting underage girls, reduced to 50 years due to Thai legal limits.

Charged with the crimes dating back to 1988, the meditation guru was arrested in 1995 after hilltribe girls housed in a dormitory he had built in the temple came forward with the accusations, which led to him being defrocked. Six female followers were given prison sentences from three to 10 years for conspiring with Chamong.

The Nation