Phantom lock picker of Paris parks becomes folk hero

This file photo taken in March shows the gates of the closed Tuileries Gardens in Paris as all non-essential public places have been closed to prevent the spread of Covid-19. Photo: AFP

A mysterious figure who picks the locks of Paris parks at night for people who have been cooped up in the city's tiny apartments has become something of a folk hero.

Parks have been chained up in Europe's most densely populated capital since the coronavirus lockdown began more than two months ago.