Cult leader whose followers drank his urine raided as 11 corpses found

Cult leader whose followers ‘consumed bodily fluids and worshipped corpses’ is arrested at his home in Thai jungle where police find 11 bodies

  • Thawee Nanra, 75, was arrested deep in the Thai jungle after a raid on Monday
  • Police found the corpses of 11 of his followers, including a mother and child
  • Followers consumed his bodily fluids, believing it would cure them from disease

A forest-dwelling cult leader whose followers worshipped corpses and consumed his faeces and urine has been arrested after police found 11 bodies in his jungle camp.

The thatched home of Thawee Nanra, 75, from Thailand, was raided by police yesterday in Chaiyaphum province.

Supporters screamed and jostled with the officers in the chaotic scenes as they tried to save their bearded, shirtless leader who claims to be the ‘father of all religion’ before he was led to a police car.

Cult leader Thawee Nanra has been arrested after police found 11 corpses in his jungle camp in Thailand

Police said they found 11 corpses on the premises and local media said they were believed to be the bodies of his followers

Supporters screamed and jostled with the officers in the chaotic scenes as they tried to save their bearded, shirtless leader


Police said: ‘We have dead bodies, and we will have to work with all agencies to establish facts surrounding these individuals’

Police said they found 11 corpses on the premises and local media said they were believed to be the bodies of his followers.

Thawee said he stored the dead bodies to wait for the spirits to return to heaven.

Provincial Gov. Kraisorn Kongchalad said Thawee had at least a dozen followers living with him, while coffins containing bodies were scattered around the house. 

Devotees reportedly told authorities that the leader’s urine and phlegm were believed to be cures for diseases.

Five coffins were found outside the shelter, one of which was of a dead infant and another, of his dead mother. All of the coffins were drilled to allow the lymph fluid to flow out. 

Devotees reportedly told authorities that the leader’s urine and phlegm were believed to be cures for diseases

The thatched home of Thawee, 75, from Thailand, was raided by police yesterday in Chaiyaphum province

Thawee said he stored the dead bodies to wait for the spirits to return to heaven

Thawee told officers that all his followers were there willingly, saying: ‘I didn’t force anybody to stay here or do anything they didn’t want to.’

Devotee Mana, 45, said: ‘We have papers showing that the relatives have given consent with a death certificate. Some of them have practised meditation in this place.

‘As for the burial, we follow the process of the medical team. The body is put in a sealed bag and injected with formaldehyde to prevent the corpse from rotting.’

The authorities believe the group existed for more than four years without anyone noticing because of the remote location of the leader’s forest house.

But their anonymity ended after a daughter of one of the followers complained to a social media celebrity whose speciality is exposing unscrupulous religious figures.

Khun Jenjira, 53, from Khon Kaen province, also complained to officials that her 80-year-old mother at the site was being barred from returning home. 

Police say they are looking into other charges, including unlawful disposal of bodies, as the leader was denied bail

Five coffins were found outside the shelter, one of which was of a dead infant and another, of his dead mother

The authorities believe the group existed for more than four years without anyone noticing because of the remote location

Devotees reportedly told authorities that the leader’s urine and phlegm were believed to be cures for diseases

She said: ‘I went to visit my mother. I saw how women were forced to follow a dress code by wearing a knee-length sarong and men had to wear formal trousers. Everybody had to remove their shoes before entering the site.

‘But what was even more shocking was that I watched my mother rub the leader’s phlegm on her face and ate the man’s scurf. There were 11 dead bodies of the devotees on the premises. My mother had also instructed me to leave her body in the same place.

‘The followers defy all Covid rules. They said that, once you have devoted your life to following the man’s teaching, you will be safe from Covid-19.’

Thawee was initially charged with encroaching on a forest area — his house was said to be on public land — and illegal gatherings prohibited under disease control laws that have been used in the past two years to battle Covid.

Thawee told officers that all his followers were there willingly, saying: ‘I didn’t force anybody to stay here or do anything they didn’t want to’

Kraisorn said he was shocked to discover such practices still went on in the modern age

Local media reported that he was denied bail on Monday.

Police say they are looking into other charges, including unlawful disposal of bodies.

Kraisorn said he was shocked to discover such practices still went on in the modern age.

‘It’s quite disturbing to see that there are people who believe in such superstition. But this is not only about a personal belief anymore. 

‘We have dead bodies, and we will have to work with all agencies to establish facts surrounding these individuals,’ he said by phone.

Thailand’s population is overwhelming Buddhist, but many people hold beliefs outside the religion, such as the worship of local spirits and fear of ghosts.

Police Colonel Wattanachai Chanthathum added: ‘Officers have already confirmed that there are 11 bodies on the premises. So far, there were trespassing charges against the religious sect. There will be a thorough investigation so the right legal procedure can be followed.’

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