You are here

France arrests six over Banksy artwork stolen from Bataclan

By AFP - Jun 27,2020 - Last updated at Jun 27,2020

In this file photo taken on June 1, an Italian Carabinieri poses near a piece of art attributed to Banksy, that was stolen at the Bataclan in Paris in 2019, and found in Italy, during a press conference in L'Aquila (AFP Photo)

PARIS — Six people have been arrested in France over the theft of an artwork by street artist Banksy commemorating the victims of the 2015 Paris attacks that was stolen from the Bataclan concert hall, sources said on Saturday.

The suspects were arrested across France this week after the artwork, an image of a girl in mourning painted on one of the Paris venue's emergency doors, was found in Italy earlier in the month, judicial and police sources told AFP.

Two were charged with theft while the other four were charged with concealing theft, the sources added. All six were placed in pre-trial detention.

The door with the artwork was cut out and taken in January last year at the Bataclan, where gunmen of the terror group Daesh massacred 90 people in 2015.

On June 10 this year, French and Italian police said that they found the work in an abandoned farmhouse in Italy's central east Abruzzo region.

One of the French policeman who intervened in the 2015 Bataclan attack was present when the door was found, and was overcome with emotion, according to the French crime unit.

Works by Banksy, known for their distinctive style, irreverent humour and thought-provoking themes, have been found on walls, buildings and bridges from the West Bank to post-Hurricane Katrina New Orleans.

At auction, they have sold for more than $1 million.

 

up
85 users have voted.


Newsletter

Get top stories and blog posts emailed to you each day.

PDF