Thieves steal Banksy art...and the wall, too

Usually when a piece of graffiti is removed from a street, the residents are only too delighted to see the back of it. But when the urban painting is by "guerrilla artist" Banksy, it's a different matter.

Several years ago, when he was unknown, Banksy stencilled a black silhouette image of a rat bouncing a beach ball beneath a "No Ball Games" sign on a wall in Gloucester Gardens, Paddington. As his fame grew, the witty painting became a popular local landmark.

Now, however, it has become a victim of his success. Thieves using an angle grinder cut out the section of wall with the image on and put the whole lot up for sale on eBay for £20,000.

Resident Marion Lau-Mackaay said: "I have complained to Westminster council but they said they could take no action.

"My six-year-old son loved it so much he did a painting of it after he heard it had gone and sent it to Banksy with a letter saying 'I hope this makes you feel better'."

Another resident, David Hopwood, said: "I have complained to the police but they said as it wasn't a robbery or an assault, they couldn't help."

Although the rat of Gloucester Gardens was painted during the early days of Banksy's career, the Bristol-born artist was so fond of it that he included it in his best-selling art book Wall And Piece.

Following a string of complaints to eBay about the sale, the item has been removed from the site.

The wall, which was vandalised late last year, has been patched up by council workers with a piece of wood. Banksy, through his spokesman, refused to comment on the theft.

A Westminster spokesman said: "This is more a matter for the police."