A person removes a Banksy artwork depicting what appears to be three drones on a traffic stop sign unveiled at the junction of Southampton Way and Commercial Way in Peckham, southeast London, on Friday December 22, 2023. (Aaron Chown/PA via AP)Aaron Chown/APA person removes a Banksy artwork depicting what appears to be three drones on a traffic stop sign unveiled at the junction of Southampton Way and Commercial Way in Peckham, southeast London, on Friday December 22, 2023. (Aaron Chown/PA via AP)Aaron Chown/APA person removes a Banksy artwork depicting what appears to be three drones on a traffic stop sign unveiled at the junction of Southampton Way and Commercial Way in Peckham, southeast London, on Friday December 22, 2023. (Aaron Chown/PA via AP)Aaron Chown/AP
LONDON (AP) — Investigators are probing the suspected theft of a Banksys artwork after witnesses took photos and videos of a man removing a red stop sign with three military drones, London police said Saturday.
The sign was taken less than an hour after the elusive street artist posted a photo of the work to his Instagram page on Friday.
The video showed a man with bolt cutters climbing onto a bicycle to remove work from a signpost on a street corner in the Peckham district of south London, while another man stabilized the bike. The man who cut out the sign then ran away with the sign in his hand.
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In a video of the incident, a voice could be heard saying: “It makes me so angry” as the man ran away.
A witness, who only wanted to be named Alex, told the PA news agency that the small crowd that had come to view the work stood around and watched the scene unfold.
“We said, ‘What are you doing? But no one really knew what to do, we just watched it happen,” Alex said. “We were all a bit amused; There were a few car horns.”
The Metropolitan Police appealed for help from anyone with information about the reported theft. As of late Saturday afternoon, no arrest had been made.
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Jasmine Ali, deputy chairwoman of the local district council, called for the piece to be returned.
“It should not have been removed and we would like to have it back so everyone in the community can enjoy Banksy’s brilliant work,” Ali said.
The stop sign has been replaced.
Banksy's thought-provoking and satirical art often takes aim at war. Many of his followers on Instagram interpreted the work as a call for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.