A masked vandal has issued a chilling message while holding the stolen, severed head from a statue of a former Australian prime minister – while kneeling on the bust of another.
As well as holding the decapitated statue head of Paul Keating and kneeling on Kevin Rudd, the thief, who was dressed entirely in black – held a sledgehammer in their right hand and had a foot on the Australian flag.
A caption with the shocking photo read: ‘Victoria Police say return the heads? We say return the land to its rightful owners! The colony is falling.’
The two former Labor prime ministers’ statues were among the 20 bronze busts that were damaged in the Ballarat Botanical Gardens in the early hours of January 23.
Of the other 18 statues – which are also of former prime ministers – name plates were covered in paint, with the damage bill estimated to be $140,000, the Courier reported.
The stolen heads of Mr Keating and Mr Rudd are valued at around $50,000 each.
The incident was part of what has become an annual show of criminality in the lead up to Australia Day on January 26, often targeting statues of Captain Cook.
Police say an angle grinder was used to remove the busts of the two former leaders, and they want to talk to four people seen in a silver ute that was caught on CCTV.
As well as holding Paul Keating’s head and kneeling on Kevin Rudd, the hoodlum (pictured) held a sledgehammer in their right hand and had a foot on the Australian flag
Ballarat Police Acting Inspector Brad Hall said it was ‘disappointing to see that someone has got such little regard for the wellbeing of the Ballarat community’.
‘Knowing full well the emotions that their actions have created, to have a complete disregard for that is quite disappointing,’ he said.
Peter Nicholson, the sculptor of several of the busts, including those of Mr Keating and Mr Rudd, was distraught by the vandalism.
‘It is very upsetting … especially for the people of Ballarat,’ he told ABC Radio when the crime was reported.
‘(Prime Ministers Avenue is) very popular. It’s got every prime minister since federation, and it’s the only one of its kind in Australia.
‘It’s just a disgraceful thing that it’s been vandalised in this way.’
He said the Paul Keating statue had been damaged before and was reinforced with steel through its neck.
‘I don’t know how (the criminals) did it. There have been various bits of vandalism on them, so they’re very strongly made, and very strongly secured,’ he said.
Former Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull is pictured at the unveiling of his bust at the Ballarat Botanical Gardens on Friday, November 4, 2022
Statues of former prime ministers in Ballarat Botanical Gardens are covered after they were damaged by vandals
‘It’s hard to be able to get into the mindset of somebody who’s going to do something so mindless.’
Ballarat mayor Tracey Hargreaves said the attack was ‘completely unacceptable’.
‘It is not only extremely costly to our ratepayers and will divert money away from critical council services, but it detracts from Ballarat as a city,’ she said.
The police are treating the damage to the statues as a ‘political statement’ and believed the photo was legitimate.
The exhibit has long been the site of vandalism attempts, with the busts of former Liberal prime ministers John Howard and Tony Abbott having been sprayed with red paint in 2020, the Age reported.
‘The gardens are a much-loved community location for everybody,’ Inspector Hall said.
‘It’s only a matter of time before you’re arrested and put before the courts. I’d suggest you expedite that and return the heads to where they need to be.’
He said while it is possible there will be further attacks on the statues, at the moment ‘there’s nothing to suggest this is going to be an ongoing thing’.
He added police were still reviewing CCTV into the vandalism.
