THE OFFICE of Green Party Senator Niall Ó Brolcháin in Galway was vandalised on Monday night.
Mr Ó Brolcháin, a former mayor of Galway, said he was appalled after bright red paint was smeared on the front of his new office in Salthill.
The office was opened two weeks ago by Minister for the Environment John Gormley.
The Senator, who won the Seanad byelection in December to a seat vacated through the election of Labour’s Alan Kelly to the European Parliament, said he did not know who carried out the attack, but he suspected it was politically motivated.
He was on his way to Dublin yesterday morning when he was made aware of the incident, and he turned back to assess the damage and consult his staff.
It is believed that two bottles filled with bright red paint were flung at the building, smearing the front of it and splashing adjoining premises.
“It’s pretty gruesome and I’m appalled by it. It’s an act of vandalism and an act of intimidation. Neighbours and people passing in cars have been stopping to look at it with disgust on their faces.
“I can only speculate as to why this was done, but one would have to suspect that it is politically motivated,” the Senator said.
“The gardaí have been informed, but it is going to be difficult to clean up as it is not exterior paint, it’s gloss paint,” he added.