Montgomery County Police responded to the 13440 block of Layhill Road for the report of a robbery that occurred shortly before 11am on Sunday morning at Wat Thai Washington, D.C.- a Buddhist temple on Layhill Road in Silver Spring. Police believe the burglary is related to a previous break-in at The Noor Center in Germantown on Saturday, March 24.
According to police, “Three adult males entered the temple and stole property belonging to a monk who resides at the location. Detectives do believe there is a connection to the previous burglary that occurred on March 24, 2024.” Approximately $20K was stolen, per a FOX5 report.
The safe contained about $20,000 in donations, according to resident monk Ruangrit Thaithae, or Monk Jack as he’s known. He said he was planning to take it to the bank to deposit it the next day, Monday. “I would like to tell them that even if the law enforcement can’t catch them, the karma will,” Thaithae explained. “In Buddhism, we believe in karma. Karma will catch them soon.”
The Noor Center, a community and religious center located at 20500 Boland Farm Rd in Germantown, was broken into on Saturday, March 24, 2024, around 12:40 PM. We have been told that “three unidentified individuals forcibly entered the community house, leaving behind significant damage, but no valuables were reported stolen.”