One of Banksy’s most iconic works, Girl with Balloon, has been stolen from a London gallery and two men have been charged with theft.
The work, estimated to be worth up to £200,000, was stolen from the Grove Gallery over the weekend, and Larry Fraser, 47, and James Love, 53, were arrested following a police investigation.
The Balloon Girl was recovered following an investigation by detectives from the Metropolitan Police Flying Squad. The Balloon Girl is ready to be returned.
Fraser, from Beckton, East London, and Love, from North Stifford, Essex, were charged on Thursday 11 September with non-residential burglary and remanded in police custody.
They both appeared at Wimbledon Magistrates’ Court on Thursday 12 September, where they were released on bail to appear again at Kingston Crown Court on Wednesday 9 October.
Larry Fraser, 47, and James Love, 53, have been charged with theft after Banksy’s Girl with Balloon (pictured) was stolen from a London gallery on New Cavendish Street.
The investigation was launched following a robbery at the New Cavendish Street site at around 11pm on Sunday 8 September.
The gallery had been hosting a Banksy exhibition, titled ‘Breakout: Banksy’s London Rebellion’, which ended on Saturday.
A statement from the Metropolitan Police confirmed that Banksy’s Balloon Girl was the only item stolen and that it has now been recovered and will be returned to the gallery.
The work, which depicts a young woman with black graffiti who has just released a red heart-shaped balloon, is one of the street artist’s most recognizable pieces.
It was first seen on Waterloo’s South Bank in 2002, alongside the quote: “There is always hope”.
This follows a wave of Banksy paintings that appeared in the capital, several of which were defaced over the summer.
A mural depicting two elephants sticking their heads out of a white window appeared in Chelsea, London, a week ago but has already been desecrated with grey stripes.
Located in Edith Grove, the painting marked the second of nine animal-themed artworks to appear in the capital by the elusive artist.
Banksy’s rhino mural in Charlton was also vandalised with spray paint in August, while the artist’s lone wolf on a satellite dish in Peckham mysteriously disappeared.
A video has emerged showing the shocking moment the artwork was dismantled before being moved.
A group of hooded men wearing masks and gloves were seen climbing the building, removing the satellite dish and walking away.
A Banksy spokesman previously said the artist was not connected to or endorsed the theft of the wolf artwork and that they had “no knowledge of the current whereabouts of the plate”.