A wild elephant was captured on surveillance footage killing a Buddhist monk in eastern Thailand.

Phra Prachon Suksingh, 66, was trampled to death by a wild elephant in Chanthaburi province at around 9:20 p.m. local time on Saturday.

Another Buddhist monk at the Wat Santiranaram temple discovered Suksingh’s body outside on the temple grounds at 5 a.m. the next morning.  

“Nobody had seen Monk Jaron during the morning ritual,” temple caretaker Wasan Meesapan told The Sun. “The next we saw of him was when his body was found. He was already dead.”

Staff confirmed that an elephant was responsible for the monk’s death after reviewing surveillance footage and finding footprints at the scene.

Another monk said he heard the temple’s dogs barking at the time of the incident. He suspects that Suksingh had gone outside to check on the dogs when he was attacked by the elephant.

“The monk was dead when police and ambulance staff arrived. There was no chance to save him,” Kaeng Hang Maeo Police Station officers reported. 

The wild elephant, who lives at the nearby Khao Chamao-Khao Wong National Park, is estimated to be about 7 to 10 years old with tusks that are about 50 cm long. There have recently been three or four elephants walking through the temple grounds, according to the monks.

Wildlife rangers have reportedly been deployed in the area to keep elephants away from villages.  

Featured Image via GMM25Thailand