Buddhist Monk Pleads Guilty to Stealing $260,000 From Louisiana Temple
Khang Nguyen Le, 38, has admitted to embezzling a Buddhist temple for three years.
He became a habitual gambler and said he would spend up to $10,000 playing on blackjack table when he frequented casinos regularly.
The Feds were alerted when he withdrew $4,280 from the temple account at an ATM at the Casino resort.
He now faces a prison term of up to 20 years as well as a $250,000 fine
It seems that Karma came back to bite the Buddhist monk for embezzling it is thought to be at least $200,000 or could have been as much as $260,000 or more from a Louisiana temple.
Khang Nguyen Le, associated with the Lafayette's Temple Tinh Do, pleaded guilty to a count of wire fraud, admitting that he had frittered away the money from the temple gambling at L'Auberge Casino Resort in Lake Charles.
The frequency of his visit was 2-3 days and want alone to prevent other monks from knowing what he was doing, gambling at deserted spots to avoid meeting members of the congregation of the temple.
At the time of his arrest Le was the presiding monk for the Vietnamese Buddhist Association of South-east Louisiana Inc., this was a position that he had held from from 2010 to October 2014 his monthly payment for this position was $1,000 a month.
Le took advantage of his position in which was in charge of the three accounts associated to the temple. He says that he began withdrawing money as far back as 2011, and that he sometimes returned the money.
He has made three appearances in court, after his cousins were told not to raise bail by the community, Le does not speak English only Vietnamese had claimed he did not understand the charges in the two previous court appearances.
At the third court appearances he was accompanied by English and Vietnamese attorney’s plus a Vietnamese translator. His sentencing will be in Shreveport on June 27.
