Thai police have begun searching a Buddhist temple complex in a bid to arrest an influential monk wanted over alleged money laundering.
Officers entered the site after previous attempts were thwarted when thousands of the monk’s devotees turned up in his defence.
The spiritual leader is believed to be inside the large compound.
Police said they did not find him on Thursday but would return on Friday to continue looking.
A Thai police spokesman said officers covered 15-20% of the complex. The search warrant was valid for 10 days, he said.
The Dhammakaya temple is a sprawling compound on the outskirts of Bangkok.
