CCTV camera captures a mobile crane believed to be used to steal Big Mango tourist attraction from Bowen in north Queensland overnight.

THE removal of Bowen’s monster mango attraction has been revealed to be a stunt by .... a fast food chain.

The ten-tonne, three-storey high mango was located this morning in the bushes behind the Bowen Tourist Information Centre – from where it disappeared early yesterday morning.

Bowen Tourism board chairman Paul McLaughlin had insisted they were not behind the big fruit’s disappearance, and it seems he was telling the truth – although he was in on the plan.

In a statement, chicken fastfood chain Nando’s said they promised to “take good care of the mango, and would return it to its rightful position soon(ish)”.

A spokesman said more would be revealed on Friday.

The apparent heist of the $90,000 mega mango attracted nationwide attention and a Facebook page set up to help search for it was shared by thousands of people.

Today another prankster not involved in the stunt, has even posted an ad on Gumtree offering to sell the big mango for $5000, or trade it for the Big Banana from Coffs Harbour.

Earlier today, the Courier-Mail revealed that the three-storey high fruit was found in bushes behind the information centre.

Yesterday, a security camera apparently caught the thieves of on their way to the scene of the crime.

Bowen Tourism said a CCTV camera at the nearby Bowen Tourist Information Centre captured a large unmarked mobile crane heading north toward the iconic attraction about 2am Monday.

Mr McLaughlin said: “Being 4km outside of town the camera was installed in case the information centre got broken into.

“No one in their right mind considered for a second that someone would take a giant three-storey-high, 10-tonne mango. It’s not like it’s something that can be easily hidden.”

Mr McLaughlin said large tyre marks near the site of the Big Mango suggest a heavy vehicle had left the site headed south along the Bruce Highway.

ABC journalist Jessica Nairn tweeted on a sighting in the early hours.

The 10 metre high Bowen 'Big Mango' has gone missing overnight! Culprits were spotted using heavy machinery to move the fruit around 2am. — Jessica Nairn (@jessnairn) February 24, 2014

Bowen is Australia’s mango producing capital and the Big Mango was created in 2002 as a tourist attraction.