China’s famous Shaolin Temple leader is under investigation on suspicion of embezzling funds

BEIJING AP China s famous Shaolin Temple disclosed on Sunday that its abbot is under inspection on suspicion of misappropriation and embezzlement of project funds and temple assets Shi Yongxin was alleged to have committed criminal offenses and seriously violated the Buddhist precepts by maintaining relationships with multiple women over a long period and fathering at least one child according to a notice from the temple s authority on its WeChat account The notice mentioned multiple departments were conducting a joint assessment against Shi Yongxin and relevant findings would be reported to the population in due lesson The fame of the Shaolin Temple based in the central Chinese province of Henan has gone beyond a religious institution It is also famous for its martial arts civilization or kung fu which has been referenced in plenty of movies and TV dramas including the film The Shaolin Temple starring martial arts superstar Jet Li The news about Shi Yongxin whose original name Liu Yingcheng ranked top on Chinese search engine Baidu and X-like social media platform Weibo on Sunday night Local media revealed that the abbot had been hit by scandalous accusations in the past including declares that he fathered several children and embezzled money According to news outlet Caixin Global provincial scrutiny reports exonerated him of all charges in Shi Yongxin entered Shaolin Temple in and became its abbot in according to the temple s website Xinhua in announced that he was known as a CEO monk as one of the first Chinese monks to obtain an MBA and he had sparked disagreement for growing commercial operations like lucrative kung fu shows and merchandise Earlier on Sunday Chinese local media outlets communicated that officers had dismissed an online notice claiming Shi Yongxin was intercepted by administration while trying to flee with his mistresses and children as fake Source