{
  "id": 12585845,
  "title": "A former Buddhist monk who founded a Thai AIDS hospice has been convicted of embezzlement",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/07/a-former-buddhist-monk-who-founded-a-thai-aids-hospice-has-been",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-07T08:34:55.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Winnipeg Free Press",
    "slug": "winnipeg-free-press",
    "url": "https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/arts-and-life/life/faith/2026/10/07/a-former-buddhist-monk-who-founded-a-thai-aids-hospice-has-been-convicted-of-embezzlement"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": null,
  "summary": "A former Buddhist monk in Thailand, who founded a highly praised AIDS hospice, has been convicted of embezzlement and sentenced to a maximum of 50 years in prison. Alongkot Poonmook, formerly known as Phra Ratcha Wisutthiprachanat, misused donations to the hospice for people with HIV/AIDS, leading to a total sentence of 742 years for himself and over 386 years for his associate, Seksan Sapsubbsakul. The court ordered the return of over 300 million baht to the hospice, which has faced scrutiny over the misuse of funds.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Bangkok Post",
        "title": "Aids hospice embezzlers sentenced to hundreds of years",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/07/aids-hospice-embezzlers-sentenced-to-hundreds-of-years",
        "published": "2026-10-07T07:45:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "South China Morning Post",
        "title": "Ex-Buddhist monk who founded Thai Aids hospice convicted of embezzlement",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/07/ex-buddhist-monk-who-founded-thai-aids-hospice-convicted-of",
        "published": "2026-10-07T09:25:31.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}