Banksy could finally be unmasked as police launch probe into new artwork on Royal Courts of Justice as potential ‘criminal damage’ of Grade I listed building

Banksy could finally be unmasked as police launch an investigation into possible ‘criminal damage’ after a new artwork was sprayed on the Royal Courts of Justice in London. 

The artwork, which depicts a judge beating a protester with a gavel, was graffitied on the Grade I-listed building on Monday, before being swiftly covered up by officials.

Security guards were later seen patrolling in front of a screen concealing the mural confirmed as being by the renowned street artist.

The Metropolitan Police said it has launched a probe into the graffiti after receiving a report of ‘criminal damage’ and that enquiries are continuing.  

Banksy has remained anonymous for almost three decades but he would have to disclose his name if he were to appear in court. 

He shared a picture of the artwork on his Instagram, with the caption: ‘Royal Courts Of Justice. London.’ 

His post gave a clear view of the whole image, showing the demonstrator on the ground carrying a blood-spattered placard – while the judge is wearing a wig and gown. 

The art was was stencilled on an external wall of the Queen’s Building at the courts complex, before being quickly hidden by large sheets of black plastic and two metal barriers.   

Banksy could finally be unmasked as police launch an investigation into possible ‘criminal damage’ after a new artwork was sprayed on the Royal Courts of Justice in London 

The artwork, which depicts a judge beating a protester with a gravel, was graffitied on the Grade I-listed building on Monday, before being swiftly covered up by officials.

Security guards were seen patrolling in front of a screen concealing the mural confirmed as being by the street artist 

HM Courts and Tribunals (HMCTS) said the artwork would be removed from the building. 

‘The Royal Courts of Justice is a listed building and HMCTS are obliged to maintain its original character,’ a spokesperson said. 

The artwork appears to be in reference to protesters being arrested.

It follows almost 900 people being arrested in central London at Saturday’s demonstration supporting banned group Palestine Action, in what is thought to be Britain’s biggest ever mass arrest.  

Scotland Yard condemned what police called the ‘intolerable’ abuse of its officers suffered during the rally in Parliament Square, in Westminster, attended by an estimated 1,500 people.

A total of 890 people were detained, with 857 people held made for showing support for the organisation earlier this year proscribed by the Government and then-Home Secretary Yvette Cooper as a terror group.

Meanwhile, Defend Our Juries, a campaign group which organised Saturday’s rally, praised the work for ‘powerfully depicting the brutality unleashed by Yvette Cooper on protesters by proscribing Palestine Action’.

They added: ‘When the law is used as a tool to crush civil liberties, it does not extinguish dissent, it strengthens it.’ 

The Metropolitan Police said it has launched a probe into the graffiti after receiving a report of ‘criminal damage’ and that enquiries are continuing

The art was was stencilled on an external wall of the Queen’s Building at the courts complex, before being swiftly hidden

A Metropolitan Police spokesperson said: ‘On Monday, 8 September officers received a report of criminal damage to the side of the Royal Courts of Justice.

‘Enquiries continue.’

Criminal damage could lead to a prison sentence of up to 10 years if more than £5,000 of damage is caused.

While a sentence of three months or a £2,500 fine could be handed out if damage is under £5,000.

Other Banksy murals which have recently appeared include one which internet sleuths pinpointed in May this year as being in the French city of Marseille.

The artwork included the words ‘I want you to be what you saw in me’ and in a second photo two people could be seen walking with their dogs past it.

A false shadow was also drawn on the pavement from a nearby bollard to give the illusion the lighthouse is a silhouette of it.

His other murals in London have included nine animal-themed pictures that appeared in nine different locations across the capital in August last year.

His final piece depicted a gorilla lifting the shutters of London Zoo to release a sea lion and birds, while other wildlife appear to look out from the inside.

It came after stencils of a goat, elephants, monkeys, a wolf, pelicans, a cat, piranhas and a rhinoceros were drawn across the city.

It follows almost 900 people being arrested in central London at Saturday’s demonstration supporting banned group Palestine Action

Banksy, who began his iconic street art more than 25 years ago, has sold his works for hundreds of thousands of pounds

One of Banksy’s most striking moments was in 2003 when he disguised himself as a pensioner and installed a piece in a vacant spot in the Tate Britain in London.

His artwork Girl With Balloon self-destructed in a Sotheby’s London saleroom when descending into a shredder in 2018.

That piece was then renamed Love Is In The Bin, which in 2021 sold for £18.6million – an all-time high for a Banksy artwork.

One of Banksy’s earliest works is the The Mild Mild West, painted in 1999 in Bristol’s Stokes Croft and shows a teddy bear throwing a Molotov cocktail at three riot police.

Banksy, who began his iconic street art more than 25 years ago, has sold his works for hundreds of thousands of pounds.

His identity has been shrouded in secrecy until The Mail on Sunday launched an investigation in 2008, naming Robin Gunningham as the Bristol artist. His identity nevertheless remains unconfirmed