A man suspected of stealing a Banksy piece featuring three military drones at a stop sign – less than an hour after the elusive artist revealed it – was arrested on Saturday in London.
A man in his 20s has been arrested on suspicion of theft and criminal damage, the Metropolitan police said.
He will remain in custody as the investigation is ongoing, authorities added.
The unidentified man and his cohorts were pictured on Friday evening using bolt cutters to remove the anti-war artwork from a traffic post in the Peckham district less than an hour after the pieces were discovered.
One of the men was seen balancing on a rented bike so he could reach the sign, while the other held the bike for him.
The man who cut the sign quickly ran away carrying it in his arms as shocked onlookers shouted for the pair to stop.
A man has been arrested on suspicion of stealing Banksy’s latest art installation. ZUMAPRESS.com
The incident happened shortly after the anonymous graffiti artist revealed the location of his latest work with a picture on Instagram at around 12.30pm local time.
A witness, known only as Alex, told the Evening Standard there were a few people “kind of admiring it and taking pictures” as the thieves approached.
“This guy came and took it, we watched in awe as he hit it. He put the Lime bike under the sign, stood on the Lime bike and tried to hit the sign, he hit it with his hand and it didn’t go anywhere,” he said.
The arrested man is in his 20s, authorities said. ZUMAPRESS.com
“He fell off Lime’s bike at one point. He disappeared and left and about two minutes later he reappeared with a bolt cutter and just tried and tried and tried while everybody watched.”
The onlooker added: “He ripped it off and ran across the street and ran away. He didn’t say anything. He doesn’t seem to care much about the art itself.”
Jasmine Ali, deputy head of the local district council, called for the cuts to be returned.
Officers put a new stop sign in place a short time later. AP
“It shouldn’t have been removed and we want it back so everyone in the community can enjoy Banksy’s brilliant work,” Ali said.
Social media users speculated that the red STOP sign artwork was linked to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict amid calls for a ceasefire in Gaza.
The stop sign has since been replaced.
Banksy artwork can command top dollar on the resale market, with a half-chopped piece fetching about $25 million at auction in 2018.
With Postal wire.
Categories: Trending
Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
