‘Pam’ swaps bird for Spider-Man as more charges laid
Emily Woods |
An alleged graffiti vandal accused of scaling dozens of landmarks to scrawl cartoon birds has transitioned into a wall-climbing vigilante.
Jack Gibson-Burrell performed as Spider-Man in front of media outside Melbourne Magistrates Court on Thursday, climbing up walls and waddling into a gutter as he left.
The 21-year-old, who is accused of being behind the infamous “Pam the Bird” tag, declined to speak during the spectacle, which carried on down the city-centre pavement towards a train station.
“Why Spider-Man? Are you protecting the neighbourhood?” a television reporter asked as he left.
Gibson-Burrell, who changed back into a shirt and pants to face court, was facing 60 charges when he last appeared in February but is now charged with 208 offences.
He is accused of breaking into Victorian train stations, abseiling off buildings and scaling heritage-listed sites to spray-paint “Pam the Bird”.
Alongside co-accused Matthew Raoul White, 39, Gibson-Burrell allegedly trespassed into Flinders Street Station in July 2024 and abseiled onto the clock tower to paint the bird.
Gibson-Burrell also allegedly graffitied Footscray’s heritage-listed Uncle Toby’s factory in June, Channel Nine’s Melbourne headquarters in September and the “Cheese Stick” column on CityLink road in October.
Police previously estimated the damage bill for Gibson-Burrell’s alleged vandalism at more than $100,000.
He’s further accused of stabbing a man in West Footscray, punching a worker in the face at Emporium Melbourne, stealing multiple cars in Torquay and ram-raiding a Nando’s restaurant in Footscray.
Prosecutor Brayden Sharp confirmed additional charges had been filed against Gibson-Burrell since the last hearing, bringing the total up to 208.
Details of the additional 148 offences were not aired in court.
Defence lawyer Micky Milardovic said the police investigation was conducted over a “significant period of time” and some of the charges included previous proceedings.
The court was told the case will go to a committal hearing in February with six witnesses to be called, including police and a civilian.
Mr Milardovic said co-accused White had made a plea offer to prosecutors for them to consider, which was why his case had been separately adjourned to a committal mention in August.
Magistrate Michelle Mykytowycz adjourned Gibson-Burrell’s case for a two-day committal hearing and approved defence’s application to cross-examine the witnesses.
A committal allows evidence to be tested before a magistrate decides whether to commit the case to trial in a higher court.
Gibson-Burrell is yet to enter a plea to any of the offences.
His bail was extended to the committal hearing, which will begin on February 2, 2026.
AAP
