Canberra, July 22: Coldplay singer Chris Martin has been charged by Australian police with malicious damage following an altercation at a beach resort, a police source told Reuters Tuesday. Martin, 26 -- boyfriend of Oscar-winning actress Gwyneth Paltrow -- and his band headlined the Splendour In The Grass music festival at Byron Bay, 500 miles north of Sydney, over the weekend.

New South Wales state police have confirmed only that a 26-year-old Englishman had been charged after a car windshield was smashed at Byron Bay Sunday but have not officially revealed the man's name.
"Byron Bay police were told that a press photographer's car was damaged after a conversation between two people at Seven Mile Beach around noon Sunday," a police spokesman said.

He said the man was issued with a court attendance notice for malicious damage to appear in Byron Bay Court on October 8.
Martin had laughed off his brush with the law, telling fans at a Sydney concert Monday that the only time he expected to see the police was when he met British rock star Sting's band of the same name.
Coldplay is performing in Sydney again Tuesday night before flying out to New Zealand.
Bureau Report