In November, street artist Banksy visited Ukraine where he painted at least seven murals on homes and buildings damaged from the war. Now, authorities there have identified the ringleader of a group they claim attempted to steal one of the artworks on the side of a house in the city of Hostomel. From CNN:
According to police, the group removed the mural from a wall and had intended to transport it from the site using wooden planks. The suspects, who hail from Kyiv and the central Ukrainian city of Cherkasy, were "detained on the spot," the head of the Kyiv region military administration, Oleksii Kuleba, said at the time of their arrest in early December[…]
Monday's statement said that the suspects had been arrested "thanks to the vigilance of locals, the police and other security forces." The ministry also said that the subsequent investigation has valued the artwork at more than 9 million hryvnias ($244,000).
