Musnad Ibn Mubarak

The noble wife of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), Sayyida Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), narrates that indeed a man from a place called Kada’, who was accused of theft by the people of Makkah, came to Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) during his caliphate. He showed kindness to him, to the extent that Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) sent a zakat collector from among the Ansar and sent him along with that man, and continued to show him compassion for nearly two months. Then he came back, and his camel was being made to sit down. The zakat collector had already cut off his hand. (Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, said:) When Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) saw him, his eyes overflowed with tears and he said, “Woe to you, what happened to you?” He replied, “O Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with you)! He found me near the obligatory (zakat) and in that he cut off my hand.” Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) said, “May Allah destroy the one who cut off your hand in this obligation which he kept at his side. By Allah! Indeed, I see him betraying in more than thirty obligations. By the One in Whose hand is my soul! If you are truly truthful, I will surely take retribution for you from him.” Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said: I was in the same house where I was before his hand was cut off in the house of Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him). That (thief) would stand and pray at night, and Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) would toss and turn restlessly on his bed, and when he heard his recitation, his eyes would overflow with tears and he would say, “May Allah cut off the hand of the one who cut off his hand.” While we were in this state, Asma bint Umais (may Allah be pleased with her), the wife of Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him), came at night; theft had occurred in her house. When Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) led the morning prayer, he stood among the people and said, “Indeed, the people of the tribe came at night, and they have been robbed. So go out and search for their belongings.” She said: That handless man sought permission to enter upon us, so Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) granted him permission, and I was sitting behind a veil. He said, “O Abu Bakr! Was there no one keeping watch at night?” Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) replied, “Yes.” So he raised his sound hand and his severed hand and said, “O Allah! Disgrace the thief of Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him).” She said: By Allah! The day had not yet fully dawned when the theft was discovered from that very house. He was brought to Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him), so he said, “Woe to you! By Allah! You know nothing about Allah. Take him away and cut off his foot.”