A Buddha statue featuring over one thousand hands and eyes has recently been stolen from a well-known pagoda in the northern province of Hung Yen.

Security camera footage shows a masked man wearing gloves entering the property and removing the statue at around 2:00 am on September 29.

After stealing the statue from the Me So Pagoda, located in Van Giang District, the man returned to remove all traces of it.

By 6:15 am the same day, the monks had woken up and discovered that someone had broken the lock and stolen the statue.

Local authorities immediately reported the crime to the provincial police department for further investigation.

“The statue was once lost in 1988 and recovered later. This is the second time it has disappeared,” said Le Tuan Anh, head of Me So Village.

The Buddha is made of wood, stands 2.8 meters tall and features 1,113 hands and 1,113 eyes.