Investigation team formed as perpetrator remains at large in murder of Dr. Phay Nyan, who praised Min Aung Hlaing as royalty of Konbaung dynasty

Yangon, July 11 A joint investigation team comprising the CID, General Administration Department, and military has been formed and is working to apprehend the perpetrator, who remains at large more than a week after the murder of Dr. Phay Nyan, who praised Min Aung Hlaing as royalty of the Konbaung dynasty, according to police sources. Dr. Phay Nyan (aka U Panya Wuntha), a fortune teller and astrologer revered by the military and the USDP, including former dictator Than Shwe and former President Thein Sein, was found murdered and deceased inside a monastery in Hmawbi Township, Yangon Region, on July 2, while he was in monkhood. "Clues have been gathered, and there has been some progress in investigating and uncovering the circumstances of the case, but the perpetrator has not yet been identified. This was not a politically motivated assassination. It was a systematically planned murder. As the monk was revered by both the military and civilians, a joint investigation team has been formed. This team includes the CID, the General Administration Department, and military intelligence," a police source said. Dr. Phay Nyan had been providing astrological readings and prophecies for the military, civilian government, and the USDP's leadership, including Khin Yee, since the military coup and continues to do so to this day. He was still being invited to religious ceremonies of the military, police, and ministries. He was murdered while overseeing the casting of a 45-foot-tall seated Buddha statue for the military, police, and government departments, intended to ward off calamities. Dr. Phay Nyan had frequently praised Min Aung Hlaing on his social media as being of the Konbaung dynasty's royal lineage and possessing great spiritual power. Dr. Phay Nyan, aged 75 and with 15 years as a monk, died within the compound of the Sandakumina Monastery in Ward 2, Sandakumina Myay Road, Hmawbi Township, Yangon Region. Dr. Phay Nyan served as a fortune teller, predictor, and astrologer throughout the entire NLD era led by Than Shwe, and he provided astrological calculations, prophecies, and predictions for former President Thein Sein. Although he held a degree in veterinary medicine, he transitioned to the fields of astrology and prophecy, and later established the Sandakumina Monastery in Hmawbi while in monkhood.