A Buddhist monk was electrocuted when he accidentally rolled over his plugged-in charger in his sleep in southern Thailand.

Phra Chanin Wongsuphanichakun, 52, was discovered lying face-down in his room at the Wat Pradittharam temple in Nakhon Si Thammarat, on August 13.

A rescue team arrived at the scene after receiving a report from the monks at 7 am local time.

They found Chanin already stiff with rigor mortis while his phone charger connected to an extension cord were under his body.

Authorities believe he was zapped to death and had been deceased for several hours.

A Thung Yai Police Station spokesman said: 'According to preliminary investigations, the monk was from Satun Province and had been staying at the temple for approximately two to three years.

'He was a well-behaved monk. This morning, the abbot noticed that he hadn't left his room as usual and went to call him. He later discovered that he had passed away.'

Chanin's body was taken to a hospital for a post-mortem exam to confirm the cause of his death.