9 Shot to Death in Buddhist Temple Attack

An attack at an isolated Buddhist temple left nine people dead Saturday, including several monks and an elderly woman, and baffled investigators were searching for witnesses or a motive.

The victims, all from Thailand, were found shot to death in a living room of the Arizona Buddhist Temple, a modest one-story structure located in a remote cotton field on the outskirts of the city. The temple, whose altar features a 12-foot-high statue of Buddha, is believed to house an unknown quantity of jewelry, gold and artworks. But it was unclear if any property was taken, police said.

A police expert on Asian gangs was at the scene, but there was no immediate evidence of gang involvement.

“Anything’s possible,” said Duane Brady, a spokesman for the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office. “It’s very strange to have nine people like this killed in a temple. We don’t have a motive at all at this stage.”

Brady declined to comment on what type of weapon was used or whether authorities believe there was more than one assailant. He said investigators were still trying to determine what might have been stolen, although police were hedging on their original conclusion that the slayings were part of an aborted robbery.

“I don’t want to rule that out,” Brady said. “We’re looking at all aspects of what led up to this crime.”

In addition to the statue of Buddha, which is covered with brass or gold leaf, the temple was thought to contain a number of smaller brass or gold-covered statues, as well as several paintings of unknown value, jewelry, computers and electronic equipment, according to residents of the area.

But one temple member expressed doubt that robbery was a motive.

“They might have looked expensive,” Soophachai Chantharangsee said of the temple’s statues and art, “but they were not valuable.”

One of the dead is believed to be the temple’s 36-year-old leader, known only as Pairach. He founded the congregation six years ago near Phoenix and was credited with helping to raise $130,000 to construct the 3-year-old building, which is the city’s only Thai Buddhist temple. Its 450 members include mostly Thai-speaking immigrants, as well as Cambodians and Laotians from throughout the area, members said.

Two other victims were said to be an 83-year-old woman and her 20-year-old grandson, who was completing several weeks of disciplinary training, temple members said. The interior of the temple appeared to be decorated for some type of celebration, possibly to mark the end of training, police said.

As police searched the temple throughout the afternoon, more than 50 members of the temple gathered at the head of the dirt road leading to the facility in a sometimes emotional vigil. Many of them, who cried and embraced as new arrivals reached the scene, said they could not imagine a motive.

“We have no idea who would have done it,” said Prakong Garland, who stayed despite 100-degree temperatures. “We have no enemies. We never get mad at anybody.”

Temple member Ekachai Huansantia, 27, of Phoenix said: “This is just horrible. This is sick. They (the monks) are harmless. Why would you want to go in and hurt someone when they don’t fight back. And they wouldn’t fight back.”

Like several others, Huansantia expressed doubt that gangs were involved. “If there was a gang . . . I know it is not Thai people,” he said. “The Thai people are friendly people.”

“I just feel shocked,” said Jerry Hastings, 19, whose grandmother is a Buddhist nun who had been living at the temple. Hastings said he believes that she is dead because officials told his mother that no one was found alive inside.

“I can’t believe it,” he said. “When my mother told me, I thought it was a joke or something. They were all lying dead on the floor.”

Asked who might be responsible, another temple member, Pranee Meeks, said: “We have no idea because the temple was open for anybody. We never even locked the gate.”

Occasionally, homeless people showed up at the door to receive food or temporary lodging from the monks, members said.

Police said it was unclear if the attack occurred Friday night or early Saturday morning. The bodies were discovered shortly after 10 a.m. by Chawee Borders, 50, a temple worshiper who went there to take flowers, according to her husband, Phil.

The temple, located about five miles north of Perryville State Prison, includes a worship area, living room, kitchen and several bedrooms.

In the wake of the killings, Buddhist monks were flying into Phoenix from temples in Los Angeles and Chicago to tend to families of the victims. Temple leaders, meanwhile, were trying to decide how they might go on with Sunday morning services.

Staff writers Jane Fritsch in Phoenix and David Ferrell in Los Angeles contributed to this story.