Quotations about:
    petty theft

The man who steals a buckle is put to death, the man who steals a state becomes a prince.

[竊鉤者誅，竊國者侯 – traditional]
[窃钩者诛，窃国者侯 – simplified]

Chuang Tzu (369-286 BC) Chinese Taoist philosopher [Zhuang Zhou (莊周), Zhuangzi ( 莊子)]

Zhuangzi (Chuang Tzŭ), ch. 10 “Quqie [胠篋; Rifling Trunks]” (3rd C BC) [tr. Graham (1981)]
    (Source)

See O'Neill (1921).

(Source (Chinese, traditional; simplified)). Alternate translations:

One man steals a purse, and is punished. Another steals a State, and becomes a Prince.
[tr. Giles (1889)]

Here is one who steals a hook (for his girdle); -- he is put to death for it: here is another who steals a state; -- he becomes its prince.
[tr. Legge (1891)]

A poor man must swing
For stealing a belt buckle
But if a rich man steals a whole state
He is acclaimed
As statesman of the year.
[tr. Merton (1965)]

This one steals a buckle and he is executed, that one steals a country and he becomes its ruler.
[tr. Palmer (1996)]

He who steals a belt buckle pays with his life; he who steals a state gets to be a feudal lord.
[tr. Watson (2013)]

One steals a hook -- he is put to death. Another steals a state -- he becomes a prince.
[tr. Yang/Höchsmann (2007)]

He who steals a belt buckle is executed, but he who steals a state is made a feudal lord.
[tr. Ziporyn (2009)]

This adage can be found in a wide array of forms, with the same basic structure (steal something small, get punished; steal something big, get rewarded), usually stripped of its Chinese/Taoist origin, e.g.:

Steal money you're a thief; steal a country you're a king.
["Japanese proverb"]

Stealing a dog is said to be immoral. Still, they steal a country and call it righteousness.
[Source]

To steal a purse is rightly held a crime.
To steal a country is an act sublime.
[Percy Russell (1919)]

One who steals a pearl is persecuted as a thief. One who steals a nation is revered as a king.
[Source]

When you steal a pin, you are executed; but if you steal a country, you become a king.
[Chinese historian Sima Qian (c. 145 – c. 86 BC)]

One who steals a little is a thief. One who steals a little bit more is a robber. And one who steals a nation is a king.
[Source]

To steal a fruit means theft, while to steal a country does not.
["Old Chinese saying"]

Those that steal a loaf of bread are hanged as thieves - those that steal a country are made emperor.
[Source]

Steal an apple and you're a thief. Steal a country and you're a statesman.
[Disney's Aladdin (2019)]