Let this be known: a crime is a crime.
The law governs the human realm, and we should never commit a crime, especially not in the name of a religious deity like Buddha.
This common sense seemed to have eluded one man in China.
He decided to steal cash from a temple after praying to Buddha, thinking that his actions were condoned.
According to Jimu News, police officers in the Jiangxi province of China caught the man for stealing from a temple’s donation box.
Source: Yiyang Public Security via Jimu News
On 8 July, they received reports from the public about repeated theft occurrences at Shuangyan Temple in Yiyang City and launched an investigation.
After rushing to the scene, the police found a man in a black and red T-shirt who had frequented the Earth deity temple on the premises in recent days.
He often looked at the donation box and showed suspicious behaviour.
Further probing brought the officers to the house of a man called Ye Mou, a nearby villager.
Upon questioning, Ye admitted that he only “borrowed” the money after praying to Buddha.
Before being arrested, he maintained that Buddha gave him an ‘OK’ sign to take the money as he said he would return it.
Based on the report, it is believed that he was referring to this gesture.
Source: Yiyang Public Security Online via Jimu News
For his actions, Ye was given 12 days of administrative detention for stealing other people’s property.
Jimu News also reported that Ye would wash his clothes at the ponds around the temple on weekdays.
Over time, he observed that the donations box was usually unattended and unlocked.
When he started experiencing financial constraints at the start of June, he took some money from the box when no one was around.
Since nobody called the police then, he returned to take more money from the box whenever he had time.
Have news you must share? Get in touch with us via email at news@mustsharenews.com.
Featured image adapted from Jimu News.
The crash was due to a bird strike, according to preliminary information.
The 8-year-old boy survived after his noose snapped while he was struggling.
They calmly picked apart the purported scammer's story by pointing out the inconsistencies.
Several stacks of half-burnt 1,000-baht banknotes were found after the fire was put out.
The woman's leg was reportedly severed in the accident.
Their family hopes the authorities can continue the search for their remains.