A man, surnamed Zhong, was unable to repay his debts, so he made his own sticky money board and then drove to a temple to steal the cash from the merit box.Photo: web

A Jiangxi court announced a case that happened in Ganzhou, East China's Jiangxi Province on June 30. A man, surnamed Zhong, was unable to repay his debts, so he made his own sticky money board and then drove to a temple to steal the cash from the merit box. After obtaining the money, he fled the scene driving his car.

The next day, Zhong used the same technique to steal from two other temples in Huichang county. 

After review, Zhong stole a total of 773.3 yuan ($106.9) on three occasions. The court held that Zhong's behavior constituted theft and sentenced him to eight months in prison and fined him 2,000 yuan.

Some netizens joked that Zhong, who was already unable to repay his debts, would be in a more difficult situation, not only financially more difficult, but also lost his merit. 

Some netizens contended that the sentence was too heavy and questionable.