Infamous Captain Cook statue in controversial pose removed from Queensland street

Calls to remove the Captain Cook statue in Cairns gained prominence in 2020 as the Black Lives Matter movement led to a removal of statues commemorating colonial figures around the world. Photograph: Cairns Police Facebook Page

A statue of a Captain James Cook with an arm raised in a position that some liken to a Nazi salute has been removed from a main street in Cairns.

Demolition contractor Martin Anton hopes to be the unlikely saviour of the controversial statue, which had been used to advertise a topless bar, after reportedly buying the statue for a token $1.