The mystery vandal, atop his 460ft-high protest perch (Image: Today)
A mysterious daredevil is currently locked in a six-hour standoff with police after scaling a 460ft bridge pillar to spray graffiti, demand lower taxes, and request a sandwich.
The unidentified graffiti artist clambered up the iconic Bolte Bridge in Melbourne, Australia, to add yet another striking mural of the city’s celebrated Pam the Bird tag across the urban skyline.
Much to the frustration of officers, he has remained perched atop the bridge pillar, partially shrouded in cloud at times owing to its staggering altitude of 460ft, as emergency responders watch anxiously from below, fearing for his wellbeing.
The enigmatic vandal, however, appears perfectly content in his lofty position, which has triggered considerable traffic chaos on the Bolte Bridge and M1 motorway.
He has put forward an extraordinary list of demands before agreeing to descend, sharing them via a social media account linked to Pam the Bird.
The man can be seen atop the Bolte Bridge, a tiny black dot above the Pam the Bird tag (Image: Today)
He initially cited “lower taxes” as a condition for coming down, while also requesting a “blankey” to ward off the bitter winter chill.
It is worth noting that Melbourne sits on Australia’s southeastern coastline, which enjoys a considerably cooler climate than many would expect. Indeed, temperatures plummeted to a low of three degrees this morning – a figure that would presumably feel significantly more biting at 460ft above ground.
The masked figure, dressed entirely in black, filmed himself gazing down upon several emergency vehicles and the road below as he pressed his demands for a tax reduction. “I’m not coming down until they lower the taxes,” he can be heard saying in the social media clip.
“I’m f***ing sick of paying that s**t.”
He’s really keen on that PB&J (Image: Instagram)
When quizzed by social media users about which specific taxes he was referring to, the account holder simply responded: “All of them”.
At around 8am local time, he put forward his next demand: a peanut butter and jam sandwich.
“I want a peanut butter and jam sandwich and a glass of milk or I’m not coming down,” he can be heard saying in a further social media clip.
He has since firmly reiterated that demand, posting a masked photograph of himself perched atop the pillar with the caption “patiently waiting for my pb and j sandwich”.
Shortly before 9am, he (presumably) sent the blood pressure of watching officers soaring as he abseiled partway down the pillar to wave at onlookers below, before clambering back up to his considerably safer position at the summit.
He has since posted an update informing authorities that he intends to descend at noon, which at the time of writing is approximately an hour away.
“I’ll be down at 12pm peacefully,” he wrote online, adding that he was awaiting the tide going out. Sea level sits a further 95ft below his aforementioned 460ft-tall vantage point, atop one of the Bolte Bridge’s gateway pillars.
Precisely how the man managed to scale the pillar remains unclear, though footage from the scene shows him abseiling down to carry out his spray-painting endeavour. The Pam the Bird tag has been spotted appearing around Melbourne on significant structures and in notable spots since 2023.
Masked and clad head to toe in black, the mystery vandal takes a selfie (Image: Today)
Pam the Bird has thus far featured on Melbourne’s renowned Flinders Street Station and the city’s ‘International Gateway’ architectural installation along the M1 for visitors to observe as they enter the city from Tullamarine, Melbourne’s international airport.
Pam the Bird particularly emerged on the large ‘Cheese Stick’, with the installation comprising numerous large orange beams (carrot sticks) and one yellow one (the big cheese stick) to embellish the otherwise plain motorway.
He remains at the summit of the bridge at this time.