During the confrontation, a monk was seen hitting a video camera of a female DSI official. He then made a headlock against her to try to take away a video camera from her hands. He would not stop although DSI officials shouted she is a woman. Monks normally do not touch body of a woman.
The aggressive advancement of the monks toward the officials prompted the officials to shout “retreat, retreat” and they retreated from the temple.
The scuffle happened shortly after 1 pm, about two hours before the deadline for non-resident monks and laymen to clear the temple’s compound as part of the operation to search for former abbot Phra Dhammachayo.