London police have arrested and charged two men with burglary Banksy’s famous art opera “Girl with Balloon” was stolen during a gallery break-in.
Larry Fraser, 47, and James Love, 53, remain in police custody on Friday following the incident at the Grove Gallery around 11pm on Sunday night, according to the Metropolitan Police.
“A Banksy painting entitled ‘Girl with Balloon’ was the only item stolen. This has now been recovered and will be returned to the gallery,” police said in a statement.
Surveillance footage showed a masked man smashing a glass door before rushing in and snapping the photo off a wall. The artwork — one of several versions of a printed image of a child reaching for a red heart-shaped balloon — is valued in court documents at $355,000, the Associated Press reports.
WHO IS BANKSY? THE ENGLAND STREET ARTIST’S WORK IS WELL KNOWN, BUT HIS IDENTITY IS A MYSTERY
A staff member poses for photographs with a print of “Girl with Balloon, 2004” by British street artist Banksy, at Bonhams auction house in London, Monday, November 8, 2021. (James Manning/PA via AP)
Originally printed on a wall in London is, The image has been reproduced endlessly, becoming one of Banksy’s best-known images.
Another version partially self-destructed at a 2018 auction, going through a shredder hidden in the frame shortly after it was purchased for $1.4 million at Sotheby’s. The self-made work, retitled “Love is in the Bin,” sold for $25.4 million in 2021, according to the AP.
FANS OF THE ELUSIVE ARTIST BELIEVE BANKSY HAS COMPLETED A SERIES OF GORILLA SILHOUETTE ARTWORKS
A Banksy painting, Girl With Balloon, on display at the Grove Gallery in London after it was stolen on Sunday, then recovered and returned to the gallery. (James Manning/PA via AP)
Bansky, who has never confirmed his full identity, began his career spray-painting buildings in Bristol, England, and became one of the world’s best-known artists.
People look at a new Banksy painting on a wall in London in March 2024. (AP Grant/Alastair)
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Metropolitan Police They say both suspects appeared in court Thursday and will make another appearance on Oct. 9.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Greg Norman is a reporter for Fox News Digital.