Man arrested after incident at Met Museum, NYPD says

A man was arrested Monday after witnesses said he damaged multiple exhibits at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Joshua Vaurin, 19, has been charged with criminal mischief in connection with the incident, the NYPD said in an email to Urgent Matter.

 Police said that officers responded after receiving a 911 call around 4:52 p.m. Officials did not say what exhibits in the museum were targeted or motivation for the behavior.

A spokesperson for the museum confirmed the incident to Urgent Matter and said that the man had been “displaying erratic behavior” and was escorted out by security.

“No individuals or works of art were harmed,” the spokesperson said. “We are grateful to our security staff and to the NYPD for ensuring the safety of The Met’s visitors, staff, and collection.”

The man had appeared to be under the influence of an “unknown substance” and was turned over to museum security and police by his mother, according to the New York Post, which first reported the story.

Sources told the newspaper that Vaurin had thrown water at Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres’s Princesse de Broglie and Girolamo dai Libri’s altarpiece Madonna and Child with Saints. He also allegedly ripped two tapestries from the wall.

The incident comes after a spate of climate change protests have targeted museums in recent years, though such protests appear to be winding down.

Follow along with other art crime stories at Urgent Matter’s art crime tracker.