UK judge slams Paddington Bear statue vandals
Royal Air Force engineers Daniel Heath and William Lawrence, both 22, set upon the statue in Newbury, southern England after a night out drinking on March 2.
CCTV footage shows the pair struggling to prize it from a bench, before splitting the hollow sculpture in two and carting half away.
They took the fragment back to their air force base in a taxi, and it was later found in Lawrence's car.
Judge Sam Goozee condemned the "act of wanton vandalism" at Reading Magistrates' Court on Tuesday, sentencing the pair to 12-month community orders after they admitted causing criminal damage.
"Paddington Bear is a beloved cultural icon with children and adults alike," Goozee said. "He represents kindness, tolerance and promotes integration and acceptance in our society.
"His famous label attached to his duffle coat says 'Please look after this bear'.
"On the night of March 2, 2025, your actions were the antithesis of everything Paddington stands for."
The vandals were ordered to pay £2,725 ($3,530) each towards repairs, and told to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work "as payback to the community", the judge said.
The statue was one of 23 along a Paddington-themed walking trail across the UK and Ireland.
Newbury was the hometown of Paddington's creator Michael Bond, which added to the statue's importance for the town, the court heard.
The friendly but accident-prone bear from Peru has long been popular in Britain following the publication of Bond's "A Bear Called Paddington" in 1958.
The character gained popularity further afield after the blockbuster success of the 2014 "Paddington" film.
In the books, the impeccably polite stowaway turns up at Paddington station with a battered suitcase containing a jar of marmalade, and the label on his blue duffle coat asking people to take care of him.