Defacing of Banksy mural by ‘mindless vandal’ is ‘a real shame’, council says

A council said it is “a real shame that a mindless vandal” defaced a Banksy in south-east London.

The eighth in the Bristol street artist’s animal series was unveiled on Monday, and was quickly spray painted white with a dollar and “v” sign.

It featured a rhino seemingly mounting a car which had a traffic cone on its bonnet.

The silver Nissan Micra which formed part of the rhino Banksy piece in Westmoor Street, Charlton, has been removed, but the local authority confirmed it did not take it away.

A spokeswoman for the Royal Borough of Greenwich told the PA news agency: “We are aware of Banksy’s latest artwork and are glad the renowned international artist recognises our status as one of London’s cultural hotspots.

“It’s a real shame that a mindless vandal has defaced the mural, which has already drawn visitors and brought so much joy to many.

“The council is now considering what would be reasonably possible for the future of the artwork and will be closely monitoring it.”

She confirmed that the local authority did not remove the car.

The Metropolitan Police said it had no reports related to the vehicle.

A spokesperson for the force said: “We can confirm that we have not received a report of criminal damage or theft of a car relating to street art installed on Westmoor Street, Greenwich overnight on Monday, August 12.”

Transport for London (TfL) confirmed it was not one of the roads that the body manages.

A video obtained by BBC News shows a man walking up to the artwork and spray painting it, leaving a white tag on it.

The crowd gathered at the piece could be heard saying “don’t do that” and as the person walks away, a voice from the crowd asks: “Why did you do that? Why did you do it?”

Banksy has been posting his animal series every day since August 5, and other works have also been removed or taken.

The sixth piece, a stretching cat on an empty, distressed advertising hoarding, was removed from its location in Cricklewood hours after it was unveiled on Saturday.

It was dismantled by three men who said they were “hired” by a “contracting company” to take down the billboard for safety reasons.

A satellite dish with a howling wolf art work was taken off the roof of a building in Peckham, south London, on Thursday by masked people less than an hour after it was unveiled.

A spokesperson for Banksy told PA he was neither connected to nor endorsed the theft of the wolf artwork and that they had “no knowledge as to the dish’s current whereabouts”.