Moment mystery man is caught painting Banksy-like mural hours before real artist completed his trail

Moment mystery man is caught painting Banksy-like mural hours before real artist completed his trail
A copycat Banksy was filmed painting an ostrich mural — just hours before the real artist completed his animal trail

The mystery man casually sprayed three birds on the side of an old Post Office

Some locals believed it was Banksy, who has left animal-themed graffiti over the capital since August 5

His final piece emerged on shutters at London Zoo, with a gorilla seemingly bending the metal to free creatures

In a cryptic twist, a key at the scene of the ostrich mural in Romford, East London, had the word “zoo” on it

Amid speculation, Banksy’s team insisted it was not him

But residents noted two of the birds had their heads in the sand, a common Banksy theme

Morgan Taylor, 26, captured footage of the mystery artist, who was dressed in a white T-shirt and black shorts, at around 11pm on Monday

He said: “He looked pretty casual and quite comfortable doing it

The zoo mural, where the gorilla releases a sea lion and birds, is Banksy’s ninth in the city in as many days

It is potentially the “source” of all the others, after paintings of animals including goats, monkeys and fish, suddenly popped up all around London

Bosses at London Zoo were delighted at Banksy’s final piece

Rebecca Blanchard said: “This was an incredible surprise

“e are, quite frankly, thrilled that he’s chosen us to be what could be the grand finale of this series that’s been so talked about.”
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