In a stunning revelation that has rocked the art world, Reuters uncovered court documents from 2000 that appear to confirm the identity of the elusive street artist Banksy. The records show that a man named Robin Gunningham was arrested in Manhattan's Meatpacking District for defacing a Marc Jacobs billboard with spray paint. The signature on the confession, though scrawled and partially illegible, was typed into court papers as Robin Gunningham.

At the time, Banksy was a relatively unknown artist experimenting with street art in New York City. The arrest occurred when two sex workers noticed him working on the billboard and alerted authorities. What began as a felony criminal mischief charge was eventually reduced, and after five days of community service, Banksy paid $310 in fines and put the incident behind him. The police, unaware they had just detained the artist who would become one of the 21st century's most successful street artists, considered it a routine graffiti case.

The discovery validates long-standing speculation about Banksy's identity that dates back to a 2008 Mail on Sunday report. For years, Banksy's representatives have denied these claims, with his authentication agency Pest Control refusing to comment on the latest findings. The court documents, now part of the public record for over two decades, provide the most concrete evidence to date about the artist's true identity.