FLYING SQUAD NABS ART THIEF AND SAVES MASTERPIECE
A thief who smashed his way into a London gallery and stole a £270,000 Banksy has been jailed for 13 months — after the Met’s Flying Squad tracked him down and recovered the artwork in just four days.
Larry Fraser, 49, of Beckton, admitted stealing the signed 2004 Girl with Balloon print from the Grove Gallery in Fitzrovia. He pleaded guilty to non-residential burglary at Kingston Crown Court and was sentenced on 14 November.
The burglary happened in the early hours of 8 September when Fraser, disguised in a mask, gloves and hooded jacket, used a hammer to break through the gallery’s glass doors. CCTV captured him loading the valuable print into a van before speeding away.
Flying Squad detectives quickly identified him, tracing him to an address just streets away. Fraser was arrested at home on 11 September — within 48 hours of the break-in — and charged the next day.
A covert search warrant executed on the Isle of Dogs on 12 September led officers to the missing artwork, which was recovered safely and intact.
Detective Chief Inspector Scott Mather, who led the investigation, said the team moved “immediately” to bring Fraser to justice, adding:
“The speed of the recovery shows the tireless work of the Flying Squad. It took just four days to restore normality.”
Grove Gallery manager Lindor Mehmetaj praised the officers for their “remarkable” work, saying the moment the painting was returned lifted “a huge weight” off his shoulders.
A second defendant, James Love, 54, of North Stifford, was found not guilty of burglary following a trial on 19 September.
