A shamed judge has been forced to retire after he was caught on security CCTV footage stealing a sacred statue of the Virgin Mary.

Justice Joao Carlos de Souza Correa was filmed brazenly walking into an antiques shop in Tiradentes, in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, and making off with the icon.

Footage shows him march straight up to the 24-inch-high statue of St Mary of the Immaculate Conception worth around BRL 4,000 (GBP 530).

Then he casually tucks it under his arm and walks out without even attempting to pay as the clip ends.

The statue is considered one of the most holy images in the Catholic church and said to show the moment the Virgin Mary is impregnated with the baby Jesus.

Although the footage was recorded in 2014 and the antique shop owner identified the judge as the thief the case never came to court.

A series of legal delays, jurisdiction disputes, and adjournments kept it from trial until prosecutors and police ran out of time to bring charges and archived the case.

Now it has emerged that Correa has been forced to quit after a decision by the Rio de Janeiro State Court of Justice.

The court's Special Body voted on 12th May in favour of compulsory retirement for the judge, the harshest penalty allowed.

Despite being toppled, Correa will continue to receive a substantial salary until he dies.

His defence team has announced plans to appeal the retirement decision, claiming it was based on a "misinterpretation" of the evidence.

Lawyer Joao Francisco Neto said: "The judge considers himself the victim of an unfounded and unjust accusation and is confident that he will be acquitted on appeal."

But it is not the first scrape on the wrong side of the law for Correa.

In 2011 he made headlines for arresting a traffic officer who had fined him for driving an unregistered vehicle without a licence.

(MJ Leidig/newsX)