A Taoist temple located along Changi Road, Hoon Sian Keng Temple, was broken into by two men who then stole money from the donation boxes inside.
The incident happened on Saturday at about 1.50am and was captured on CCTV.
The Heist
According to The Straits Times, the CCTV footage revealed that at about 1.50 am, two men were seen meticulously picking the locks of the temple’s imposing doors.
Upon gaining access to the temple, the thieves quickly ascertained that it was devoid of any occupants, creating an opportunity too tempting to resist.
Armed with a torchlight, they embarked on a stealthy exploration. Their primary objective? The donation boxes containing monetary donations from devotees.
To extract the contents within the donation boxes, the cunning duo devised an ingenious plan. They produced a long stick equipped with double-sided tape, sliding it into the boxes.
The cash then stuck on to the tape before they pulled out the money from the box, thus becoming their ill-gotten gains. This method allowed them to discreetly pilfer the donations without arousing suspicion.
Caught in action
As fate would have it, a vigilant female committee member, residing within the temple premises, unwittingly emerged as the unexpected guardian of the temple’s sanctity.
Upon spotting the audacious thieves in action, the committee member reacted swiftly. She confronted the intruders, which startled and likely unnerved them, and the thieves decided to make a hasty retreat and quickly fled from the scene.
She alerted the other committee members and they then performed a sweep of the premises to see if there were anymore intruders.
In the wake of this audacious heist, the temple swiftly contacted the local authorities. The police were informed of the incident at 2:20 AM, promptly initiating an investigation into the matter.
At the time of writing, police investigations into the incident are currently underway.
Image source: Hoon Sian Keng Temple