Taiwanese temple abbot and his son suspected of embezzling nearly NT$70 million in donations, laundering funds via cryptocurrency

Zhang Qingyu, abbot of Donglin Temple in Yilan, Taiwan, and his ordained son Zhang Weifu are accused of embezzling charitable donations, according to Guancha.cn. During a raid on the temple, investigators unearthed over a dozen iron boxes buried beneath gravel outside a meditation hall—containing gold and silver valued at over NT$330 million (approximately RMB 70 million). The probe revealed that temple funds had been transferred to personal accounts and laundered via purchases of cryptocurrencies, gold, and silver. The case remains under investigation.