A Look at Thai Temple Where Tiger Cubs Were Found Dead in Freezer

LONDON— -- At least 40 tiger cubs were found dead in a freezer at a temple in Thailand Wednesday, according to a national parks official.

Wat Pha Luang Ta Bua Temple, also called the Tiger Temple, has long been suspected of being involved in illegal wildlife trade, which the temple has denied.

ABC News spent three days at the temple in Lum Sum, Thailand, in 2008 and saw no evidence of illegal trade or mistreatment, but spoke to some tourists who said they were suspicious.

One tourist even insinuated that the tigers, calmly sleeping in the sun while tourists petted and prodded them, were drugged.

"I don't know what they're on but they've got to be on something if they're laying around like that," the Australian tourist told ABC News, a suggestion that that temple has also vehemently denied.

The temple, a popular tourist attraction, declined to comment today on reports about dead cubs, instead citing its defense in a March Facebook post:

"There have been a lot of recent posts about missing tiger cubs which accuse Tiger Temple of selling them to the black market. This is not true. The general mortality rate of captive newborn tiger cubs has by some researchers been documented to be as high as 40%; the temple mortality rate is therefore comparatively low. However as happens in life, cubs do occasionally die for various reasons, most often when a new mother lacks the experience to properly care for them."

Why the temple has been able to acquire tigers is unclear. One abbot, or monk who serves as an administrator, told ABC News that it all started after a tiger cub orphaned by poachers was brought to the temple years ago.

"The abbot cared for her and, as word spread, more people brought sickly and orphaned cubs to the temple's doorstep. Those cubs went on to have their own cubs, and nine years on there are now 34 tigers living here," the monk told ABC News in 2008.

After years of suspicion among many different wildlife conservation groups, Thai authorities seem to be reacting, now saying that the temple lacks documentation proving ownership of the tigers, which are an endangered species in Thailand.

The temple monks have resisted previous efforts to take away the tigers, but relented this week after police obtained a court order, The Associated Press reported.

But Tiger Temple wrote on its Facebook page Saturday, "Many people falsely believe this move is to do with animal welfare. This is far from the truth. The welfare of the tigers at the [DNP] facility [where they were moved] is well below that at the Tiger Temple."

The temple recently made arrangements to operate as a zoo, according to the AP, but the plan fell through when the government determined that the operators failed to secure sufficient resources.