Modern Robin Hood jailed 7 years

A former monk was last week jailed seven years for stealing from a pagoda almost VND3 billion (US$143,000), some of which he later donated to the poor and homeless.
The 32-year-old Bui Van Tuyen from the northern Bac Ninh province broke into local pagoda Ham Long in Bac Ninh and after, taking away the spoils, donated VND100 million ($4,760) to help the poor and homeless people.
After bringing the remainder to hide in his home town in Hai Duong, he decided to return it all – VND2.6 billion ($124,000) to the pagoda and confessed his sin several days later.
At the court, judge Pham Minh Tuyen admitted this is a rare case he’s ever faced in his life when the claimant -- monks of the pagoda -- tried their best to absolve the defendant from the crime of burglary.
In December last year, it was the monks who reported the theft case to local police after they discovered the sum donated by Buddhists for repairing the pagoda had been taken away.
At the court, Tuyen confessed he fell out with a monk named Dam Thanh, who is assigned to keep the sum, and wanted to commit the theft to make Thanh fall into disrepute.
Tuyen left his home to become a Buddhist monk at the age of seven and only returned to normal life in 2004 to get married.
Yet, he still frequented the pagoda to do some charity work and maintained close relationship with some monks there after 2004.
From: Tuoitrenews

Posted in: Experimental Society