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Victoria's Police Minister has confessed after being busted while interfering with a statue of former premier Sir Rupert Hamer during a prank at Parliament House.
Police Minister Andre Haermeyer and upper house colleague Theo Theophanous were caught on Wednesday night in the act of substituting Sir Rupert's bust with a naked statuette of former premier Jeff Kennett.
Liberal MP Inga Peulich said she saw the pair acting in a "furtive and secretive manner" as she walked along Stranger's Corridor about 9.20pm on Wednesday.
Ms Peulich said Mr Haermeyer was holding a cloth bag containing a "fairly bulky object". "I noted the absence of Sir Rupert's bust from its stand," she said. "You didn't need to be Einstein to work out that in actual fact the Police Minister was removing a valuable work of art from the parliament."
Ms Peulich said she repeatedly demanded that the MPs return the bust but they refused and walked away. It was found unharmed in a nearby stairwell. Ms Peulich has called on Premier Steve Bracks to determine whether the police needed to be called in.
Mr Haermeyer yesterday confessed to the escapade. He said there was "a bit of levity about" and no disrespect was intended to Sir Rupert.
Sir Rupert himself said: "It sounds like a good, big joke." Did he take offence? "No, not at all."