Schoolboy handed ‘Banksy’ print by train passenger claiming to be artist who told him ‘this will be worth about £20,000 – have a good life’

By Hannah Parry and Jo Davies
The Daily Mail

A schoolboy on a train was handed a ‘Banksy’ by a passenger claiming to be the elusive graffiti artist.

Ben Azarya was handed the signed copy of an iconic print which he was told would be worth about £20,000 after he helped a stranger pick up his paints after the fell out of his bag.

The man, on a train in Oxenholme, Cumbria, introduced himself as Robin Banks, a name that has been linked to Banksy.

He signed a print of a flower thrower, with a distinctive autograph and gave it to the helpful 14-year-old telling him to ‘have a good life’.

Ben had no idea who Banksy was until he got home and looked him up on the internet.

He said: ‘He was on the phone for most of the time talking to someone called AK47.

‘He opened his rucksack and had a gas mask and spray paints inside. He got out a piece of paper and had colours marked on it of what he had been trying out and he dropped his colours.

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