Banksy: Second arrest after artwork removed in Peckham

A second man has been arrested on suspicion of theft and criminal damage after a road sign featuring work by street artist Banksy was removed in south-east London, police have said.

The artwork, a red stop sign with three military drones added on, was unveiled in Commercial Way, Peckham, on Friday.

A man in his 20s was arrested on Saturday over the same offences. He has been bailed pending further inquiries.

The Met said the second arrested man is in his 40s and remains in custody.

Witnesses filmed the sign being taken by a man using bolt cutters within an hour of it being authenticated by Banksy when he posted a photo on his Instagram account.

The Metropolitan Police launched an investigation after receiving a report of a theft from Southwark Council.

“We are aware of footage being shared which shows the sign being removed,” the force said, adding that anyone with information about the incident or the whereabouts of the sign should call police.

In a video that later appeared on social media, a man could be seen holding a Lime hire bike steady as a second man stood on its saddle and reached up to cut the artwork free using bolt cutters.

Wrenching it off the post, he then ran down the street and out of sight.

After the artwork was removed, a new traffic sign was been put up by the local authority on Friday to avoid endangering people.

Banksy’s Instagram followers have widely interpreted his latest work as calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.

Similar drone art appeared at Banksy’s Walled Off hotel in Bethlehem in 2017 which he said had “the worst view of any hotel in the world” – referencing Israel’s controversial wall in the West Bank.