Wax Statue of Vladimir Putin Mysteriously Appears in Lobby at Madame Tussauds in London

Security guards at Madame Tussauds in London discovered a life-sized wax statue of Russian President Vladimir Putin in the lobby of the museum late Sunday night, with no identifying tags or documents associated with it. London police were called at 2:00 a.m. Sunday night, when the guards first discovered it.

“We don’t know where it came from. We didn’t commission it, or ask for it, and we don’t understand how it got in our lobby. We’re obviously very concerned.”

— Oliver MacGuffin, Tussauds spokesman

Madame Tussauds in London

Curators and experts have been called in to examine the statue, in an effort to determine its origins, but have so far yielded no clues as to the source of the statue.

“It’s very lifelike. I was startled, when I saw it. I felt like it was looking at me…”

— A janitor at Tussauds

No immediate sign of a break-in were found, but a spokesman for Madame Tussauds cautioned that the investigation is still underway, and security measures are under review.

“…At first I assumed it was in the collection and was temporarily placed in the lobby, or had been moved for cleaning, but then realized, we don’t have a statue of Putin.”

–A  Tussauds security guard

A Tussauds spokesman offered assurances that the museum will be open, as usual, but that the unidentified statue would not be on display to the public, citing security concerns.