He was half naked, trying to break into a temple. The monks confronted him, cops say

A place of serene worship was a scene of chaos in Kenneth City, Florida, north of St. Petersburg, in the wee hours of Wednesday.

According to the Pinellas County court records, law enforcement received a call from Bounthong Kedkeutla, a caretaker for the Kenneth City Buddha Temple, complaining that a half-naked man was on the roof attempting to break a window.

According to the police report, Kedkeutla said that when he and the monks confronted the suspect, later identified as Jack Alex Williams, the alleged intruder fled.

At around the same time, Kenneth City cops also received numerous disturbance calls about a half-naked man running through an apartment complex in the “immediate vicinity” of the temple. The accused was dressed only in a shirt.

When law enforcement arrived to the complex, they encountered Williams, who admitted that he had climbed over a six foot fence at the temple, climbed onto the roof and struck the window. He also admitted to taking off his shorts and sneakers and leaving them, which matched the description of the items were later found at the property.

The Hernando resident, 26, was arrested and charged with loitering and prowling.

This story was originally published June 21, 2019 at 12:07 PM.