Particle.news
Download on the App Store

London Man Jailed for Stealing £270,000 Banksy 'Girl with Balloon' Print

Detectives traced the thief via CCTV, then a Flying Squad operation recovered the artwork within four days.

Overview

  • Larry Fraser, 49, was sentenced to 13 months at Kingston Crown Court after pleading guilty to non-residential burglary.
  • CCTV showed him smashing into Fitzrovia's Grove Gallery on September 8, 2024, and carrying the signed 2004 print to a van.
  • Officers arrested Fraser within 48 hours and found the piece during a September 12 warrant on the Isle of Dogs, returning it intact to the gallery.
  • The court was told he acted to repay a historic drug debt under pressure, with Judge Anne Brown calling the burglary "brazen and serious."
  • A second defendant, James Love, was tried and found not guilty, and Fraser may qualify for immediate release consideration due to time spent on electronic curfew.