LONDON: A man covered his face with a hoodie shattered the glass door of Fitzrovia’s Grove Gallery – an art gallery located in London – and stole Banksy’s iconic artwork ‘Girl with Balloon’ which was captured on CCTV footage.
As per the CCTV footage, the thief smashed the door for about 30 seconds before breaking inside at 11pm on Sunday before taking away the artwork with him.
The £270,000 piece was part of an exhibition featuring a £1.5 million collection of Banksy works, which was nearing its end.
Grove Gallery’s manager, Lindor Mehmetaj, was horrified to find the gallery’s front door smashed on Monday morning and the artwork missing.
An investigation was launched and referred to the Metropolitan Police’s Flying Squad, known for handling serious crimes.
Two men, Larry Fraser, 47, and James Love, 53, were charged with non-residential burglary and appeared in court on Wednesday, however, the court grant them bail directed to appear before Kingston Crown Court on October 9.
Remarkably, the artwork has since been recovered.
Gallery CEO James Ryan expressed his gratitude to the police, calling their swift action “incredible.” The theft left the gallery devastated, but Ryan is relieved that ‘Girl with Balloon’ is safely back in the gallery.
