Monks bust man stealing coins from Nanjing temple fountain

A man who used a giant magnet to steal coins from a wishing fountain at a Buddhist temple found himself on the wrong end of karma after he was apprehended by monks in Nanjing, Jiangsu province.

The thief, surnamed Zhang, 32, used a magnet fastened to the end of a rope to fish out hundreds of coins from the fountain over Tuesday night at the Dinglin Temple in Jiangning district.

Zhang's luck ran out soon, when monks patrolling the temple spotted him stealing coins. A panicked Zhang attempted to flee, but his getaway was slowed down by the heavy sack of coins. Monks quickly caught Zhang and turned him over to police.

Zhang initially denied stealing the coins, saying he had brought them from home. He confessed after police pointed out his bag was wet and contained the same type of leaves floating in the fountain.

Police counted 324 yuan ($53) in coins in the sack belonging to Zhang, who is being held on theft charges.