Teen charged over alleged assault of MAGA hat-wearing man at polling booth in PM’s electorate
By Josefine Ganko and Riley Walter
An elderly man who attempted to deface an Anthony Albanese corflute at a polling booth in the prime minister’s Sydney electorate has been seriously injured in an alleged assault by a 17-year-old boy.
The man in his 80s wearing a red “Make America Great Again” hat reportedly attempted to vandalise the corflute outside the Ashfield Civic Centre in the seat of Grayndler about 1pm.
A crime scene was established at the Ashfield Civic Centre following the incident.Credit: Nine News
The elderly man reportedly became aggressive when a political volunteer asked him not to deface the signage, according to Nine News.
The 17-year-old, who was passing by, then allegedly approached the man and struck him, causing him to fall to the ground.
The elderly man was treated on the scene by paramedics before being rushed to Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in a serious condition.
The teenager was arrested at the scene on Liverpool Road and taken to Burwood police station. He was charged on Wednesday night with assault occasioning actual bodily harm and refused police bail to appear in a children’s court on Thursday. He isn’t believed to have any official political affiliation.
The forensics team take an Anthony Albanese corflute away for examination. Credit: Nine News
Other witnesses, including campaign volunteers, have given witness statements to the police, who established a crime scene and collected several corflutes for forensic examination.
A spokesperson for the Australian Electoral Commission said the incident “occurred outside of our polling place and did not involve any AEC staff”.
“Voting operations are continuing at the pre-poll voting centre in Ashfield.”
In a separate incident on Wednesday’s second day of early voting, a man was charged with intimidation after an outburst at a pre-poll booth in Macquarie Park in Sydney’s north-west.
The 30-year-old man allegedly intimidated a female volunteer and also acted aggressively towards two other volunteers at the booth in the tightly contested seat of Bennelong.
While no one was physically injured during the incident, the man allegedly kicked and damaged several political advertising signs.
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