Man arrested for allegedly stealing statue of Ben-Gurion from lobby of Tel Aviv hotel

Tel Aviv police arrested a 23-year-old Herzliya resident for allegedly stealing a statue of Israel’s first prime minister David Ben-Gurion from a hotel lobby yesterday.

A spokesman says the suspect had been staying in the Tel Aviv hotel and nabbed the statue — a recreation of a famous image of the founding prime minister doing a headstand on the beach in his swim trunks — while checking out of his room.

Within hours of receiving the report yesterday morning, detectives identified a suspect and arrived at his address in Herzliya.

They found the statue hidden in his yard, covered with a towel, the spokesman says.

The suspect was transferred for questioning at the central Tel Aviv police station on suspicion of theft and causing damage to the hotel facilities. The statue was returned to the hotel.

תיעוד: אורח במלון בת"א גנב מהלובי פסל של בן גוריון בשווי אלפי שקלים – ונעצר@OrRavid pic.twitter.com/dARi21ZH1e

— החדשות – N12 (@N12News) March 10, 2025