Former NSW deputy premier John Barilaro charged with assault and malicious damage

Former New South Wales deputy premier John Barilaro has been charged with assault and malicious damage following an alleged altercation with a TV camera operator last month.

On Friday afternoon officers issued Barilaro’s lawyers a future court attendance notice, police confirmed.

The 51-year-old is expected to appear at Manly local court on 12 October.

The charges related to an alleged altercation with a cameraman outside a venue in Manly last month.

Video from the incident shared at the time appeared to show Barilaro and the camera operator in an altercation near a set of traffic lights in the northern beaches suburb.

Barilaro later confirmed the incident during an interview with Sydney radio station 2GB, saying he had been “confronted in the dark out the front of a bar”.

“On Saturday night I went out with friends for a few drinks, for a pizza,” he said at the time.

“To come out in the dark and to have a camera shoved in your face, a microphone in your face … I am a private citizen … If that was you, how would you respond? All I did was push a camera out of my way. I did not manhandle an individual.”

Law firm Xenophon Davis has since said it would be acting for the camera operator, Matt Costello. In a statement on social media, the firm said, “With a broken camera and an injured back he hasn’t earnt (sic) a dollar since.”

“We will be seeking full compensation,” the law firm said.

Barilaro has been contacted for comment.