Liao Quanwan, 50, and Liao Yongzhan, 43, pleaded guilty to one charge of housebreaking and one charge of attempted housebreaking last week, Mothership reported.

Court documents showed that the two men had met and become friends in China before traveling to Singapore with a tour group in March to gamble and commit theft, believing Singapore was a rich country.

They brought improvised fishing tools made from string and adhesive tape to retrieve money through the slots of donation boxes.

The pair targeted Burmese Buddhist Temple on Tai Gin Road in the Balestier area.

Tourists pose for photographs at Merlion Park in Singapore, Jan. 27, 2023. Photo by Reuters

On April 2, the pair climbed over the temple's fence and used homemade tools to steal about S$300 from donation boxes. A Buddhist lecturer spotted them and shouted, prompting them to flee, The Indepedent Singapore newspaper reported.

They discarded the tools in a drain, took a taxi to their hotel and headed to Changi Airport for an earlier flight to China.

They used the stolen money for return air tickets, food and cigarettes and made no restitution.

The two men later planned another trip to Singapore in August to gamble, sightsee and commit another housebreaking offence.

They flew from China to Changi Airport on Aug. 17, where police arrested them.