Nun accused of stealing from monastery to support lavish lifestyle
Chi Ding, a Buddhist nun, is being accused of stealing from Hong Kong's Ting Wai Monastery.
Hong Kong news website Headline Daily reported that speculation is rife that she stole from the organisation's coffers to fund her own lavish lifestyle.
Apparently, Chi liked to turn the air-conditioning on in the room where she kept her two dogs, and she kept it on for them even when she was not in.
Under her charge, the financial statements from the Buddhist monastery showed that in one year, she spent HK$242,000 (S$43,000) on entertainment and HK$7,000 on dog food.
She had previously told Headline Daily that she had turned the lights off in the main temple because she wanted to save money for the monastery which was "strapped".
But reporters from Headline have since checked the temple and found the air-conditioned room with her two German Shepherds.
According to EJ Insight, when Chi became the chairman of the monastery in 2005, the organisation had HK$6.74 million in savings and assets.
By last year, there was only HK$700,000 left in the reserves despite there being donations of around HK$3 million during this nine-year period.
A volunteer, named Chan, said that Chi changed the locks on the monastery's mail box last month, so she has had sole access to the donations sent to the monastery.
WATCH: Nun accused of stealing from monastery (Cantonese)
Source: Headline Daily, EJ Insight
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