The scandal first surfaced in mid-June when the abbot of the prestigious Wat Tri Thotsathep monastery abruptly left the monkhood.

Police in Thailand arrested a woman on Tuesday who allegedly enticed a string of Buddhist monks into sexual relationships and then pressured them into making large payments to cover up their intimacy.

At least nine abbots and senior monks involved in the scandal have been disrobed and cast out of the monkhood, police said.