Two young German men on holiday from their jobs in Australia have been sentenced to corporal punishment for causing almost $10,000 worth of damage to a Singapore train.

Andreas Von Knorre, 22, and Elton Hinz, 21, were sentenced on Thursday after pleading guilty to vandalism and trespassing, and will also be jailed for nine months.

Despite begging for mercy for their “stupid mistake”, the two men will be whipped three times across their bare buttocks with a cane pole, which can leave permanent scars.

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The prosecutor described the damage, seen here, as deliberate. Photo: AAP

The duo were found to have snuck into a suburban train depot through a drainage system in November last year, spray-painting symbols measuring 1.8 metres in height and 10 metres in length on a train carriage.

The men reportedly took a photo in front of their handiwork “to serve as a trophy to gain notoriety”, the prosecution said.

“The evidence indicates that the offences were committed after thorough, meticulous, deliberate and elaborate planning,” state prosecutor Timotheus Koh said in a written statement.

Both men fled Singapore after the incident, but were caught in neighbouring Malaysia en route to Australia and extradited.

“This is the darkest episode of my entire life… I am very angry with myself and my foolish act, and I want to apologise to the state of Singapore for my stupid mistake,” Van Knorre told the court in English.

In addition to Singapore, asian nations Malaysia and Brunei also allow caning as a punishment.

—with AAP.