Large mural stolen off the side of a Cambridge arcade

"Sean Hope, the owner of DX Arcade, said the mural was special to the business and called it the arcade's "calling card." It was unveiled in February, when the arcade threw a grand opening ceremony. The mural is 10 feet by 20 feet and depicts a futuristic cityscape featuring young people. It was meant to promote the business as a forward-looking arcade, in contrast to the nostalgia-oriented "barcades" that are growing more popular, Hope told Boston.com."

"According to Hope, two people used a ladder to intentionally cut down the mural without damaging it too much. If the suspects didn't like the art, they would have defaced it, he said. Instead, they carefully cut around the places where the mural was affixed to the wall. The mural is made of vinyl, and thus could be rolled up and stuffed into a car."

"The arcade was open at the time of the theft, but it was positioned in a way that employees could not see it from inside the building, Hope said. He speculates that the crime could be part of some joke being pulled by college students. "Now, I guess it's hanging in someone's dorm or part of some kind of prank but it's really damaging for our business," he said."

A large 10-by-20-foot vinyl mural was removed from the side of DX Arcade in Central Square around 4:30 p.m. on Aug. 31. The mural depicted a futuristic cityscape featuring young people and served as a forward-looking calling card for the business after its February grand opening. Two people used a ladder to carefully cut the mural from the wall, leaving it intact so it could be rolled and taken. The arcade was open but the mural could not be seen from inside. Cambridge police are reviewing surveillance footage with other businesses.

Read at Boston.com