Elderly thief steals thousands of dollars from Paya Lebar temple donation boxes using belt coated with double-sided tape

A 69-year-old has been charged for stealing thousands of dollars from a Buddhist temple  in Paya Lebar by allegedly inserting a belt coated with double-sided tape into the donation boxes and making off with his loot.

The suspicions of temple administrators, however, became aroused when they opened the donation boxes and only found a few notes within the boxes.

Feeling that something was amiss, the temple management reviewed footage captured by surveillance cameras installed in the Kim Hong Temple and found the elderly man committing the audacious crime on 23 May.

Interestingly, the temple management discovered that the incident on 23 May was not the first time the thief had shown his handiwork at the temple. CCTV footage showed that the thief had made a habit of looting the donation boxes and had stolen from the box several times a month from as early as March.

The elderly thief’s escapades came to an end this Wednesday, 30 May, when he was arrested. He faces a maximum of 3 years in jail and/or a fine, if convicted of theft.