A 54-year-old builder accused of stealing a valuable Banksy print told a court that he wanted to add the artwork to his existing collection of pieces featuring love hearts. James Love is facing burglary charges for allegedly orchestrating the theft of "Girl with Balloon," a limited edition print valued at $340,000, which was stolen from the Grove Gallery in central London in September of last year.
The theft involved another man, 48-year-old Larry Fraser, who has already pleaded guilty to burglary for smashing through the gallery doors and physically taking the print. According to testimony at Kingston Crown Court, Fraser acted as the person who carried out the actual break-in, while Love allegedly masterminded the operation and hid the stolen artwork afterward.
Prosecution barrister Philip Stott painted a picture of two very different defendants, describing Love as a "relatively successful builder" while characterizing Fraser as "impoverished" with only $2.20 in his bank account the day before the theft. Court records show that Love transferred $250 to Fraser on the day of the crime, suggesting a financial arrangement between the two men.
The prosecution presented detailed evidence about the night of the theft, including cell phone data showing that both men's mobile phones were being used near the gallery around the time of the break-in. Fraser allegedly called Love within minutes of smashing through the gallery doors and stealing the painting, indicating coordination between the two suspects.
After leaving the gallery, Fraser took the stolen print to a nearby building where he left the artwork and changed his clothing, according to trial testimony. The night watchman at that building was "startled" to discover a "large painting" by an interior doorway and had "no idea how it had got there because it hadn't been there when he walked past the same spot earlier that evening," Stott told the court.
The prosecution alleges that the two men then pushed past the night watchman, retrieved the artwork, and drove to an apartment complex in the Isle of Dogs area of London, where Love unloaded the stolen Banksy print. The prosecution argued that Love's motivation for the theft was related to his personal art collection.
Stott revealed that investigators found "a relatively large number of pictures, about four, featuring love hearts" displayed on the walls of Love's home, and argued that the stolen Banksy work was "consistent with those others." The prosecutor suggested that "given that it was Mr Love who had multiple pieces of art based on love hearts already on his walls, it was likely stolen with a view to it eventually, when the heat had died down, ending up in the same place."
The stolen limited edition print was eventually recovered by the Metropolitan Police after Love told authorities where to find it. Love, who lives in North Stifford, Grays, Essex, has pleaded not guilty to burglary charges, and his trial is ongoing at Kingston Crown Court.
