Charges laid after Queen Victoria statue vandalised during royal visit

A prominent royal statue was vandalised while King Charles III and Queen Camilla were visiting Sydney.

A man has been arrested after allegedly damaging a statue of Queen Victoria in Sydney in an act believed to be linked to King Charles III’s Australian tour.

Police were called to the Queen Victoria Building in Sydney’s Town Hall about 5.30am on Tuesday following reports a statue had been vandalised.

Red paint was splashed over the historic monument ahead of King Charles and Queen Camilla’s packed day of events in the city.

The bronze statue of Queen Victoria, the second-longest reigning British Monarch, was crafted in 1908 and originally erected in the Irish capital Dublin.

It was shipped over to Sydney in the 1980s.

Red paint was thrown at the statue. Picture: 2GB.

Police have charged a 26-year-old man following the incident. Picture: NewsWire / Monique Harmer

NSW Police established a crime scene and launched an investigation.

A search warrant was executed at a Wonga Street home in Strathfield about 10pm on Tuesday with assistance of the Public Order and Riot Squad.

Police found and seized paint bottles, and a 26-year-old man was arrested at the home.

He was taken to Burwood Police Station and charged with malicious damage and face disguised with intent to commit indictable offence.

He was granted conditional bail and is set to front the Burwood Local Court on November 12.

The charges come as the King and Queen are set to depart Australia on Wednesday morning, heading to Samoa for the Commonwealth Heads Of Government Meeting.