SYDNEY, Sept 1, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Australian police arrested a man on Monday after a car was driven into the gates of the Russian consulate in Sydney.

New South Wales Police said they were called to the Russian consulate after reports that an unauthorised vehicle was parked in the driveway.

Officers attempted to speak to the driver, who then allegedly "drove his vehicle into the gates of the property", police said in a statement.

The 39-year-old man was arrested and is assisting police with their investigations, the statement added.

Local media showed footage of a white car with two windows smashed parked next to a Russian flag on the lawn of the consulate.

An AFP journalist at the scene said the hinge of the gate at the consulate's front entrance was bent slightly out of shape, but otherwise it had sustained minimal damage.

Australian pro-Putin commentator Simeon Boikov, known by his moniker "Aussie Cossack", has been living at the consulate since 2022, when he was charged with assaulting a 76-year-old man at a protest.

Neither the Russian consulate nor the Russian embassy responded to requests for comment.