Infamous Sydney sign holder Danny Lim taken to hospital after being arrested by police

A well-known protester in Sydney has been thrown to the ground in a violent arrest that saw him admitted to hospital in a 'serious' condition.

Danny Lim was rushed to Sydney's St Vincent's Hospital with injuries to his face and head after he was captured on camera being thrown to the ground by police.

Footage taken by a bystander shows Mr Lim calling for help and struggling as two NSW police officers detained him.

They then could be seen throwing him to the ground headfirst as Mr Lim continued to struggle as police placed him in handcuffs.

Lawyer Chris Murphy shared footage of the incident to social media, revealing that Mr Lim is now in a 'serious' condition in hospital.

Murphy, whose firm has represented Mr Lim in the past, said: "Black eye, subdural haematoma and condition serious."

"For now I am very concerned about the subdural damage to his skull," he said.

NSW Police allege that security called officers to Sydney's Victoria Building at around 11am on Tuesday.

Authorities say officers were called after the 78-year-old allegedly failed to leave the building when he was asked.

Mr Lim was wearing one of his famous signs at the time, which read 'SMILE CVNT! WHY CVNT?'

CVNT is known to be a substitute word for the swear word c**t.

NSW Police have now launched an investigation into the arrest after officers from the Sydney City area command reviewed bodycam footage of the incident.

"Police will allege the man was subsequently issued with a move on direction by officers and failed to comply," a spokesperson said, as per news.com.au.

"The man’s arrest was discontinued after he struggled with police and sustained an injury to his cheekbone."

The Sydney icon, who is well known for wearing the sandwich boards around Sydney, was fined AUD$500 (£279) in 2019 brandishing the same slogan.

During his 2019 arrest, Mr Lim was captured on camera struggling for breath while sitting on the ground in handcuffs.

The famous protester had attempted to explain to police that he believed the sign was not offensive after a previous court case saw another fine overturned.

In 2017, a NSW District Court judge overturned a conviction and AUD$500 (£279) fine after finding a sign worn in 2015 which mocked Australia's then-prime minister Tony Abbott was in poor taste but unlikely to offend the average Australian, Seven reports.

Using the same inverted A as his 2022 sign, those signs read: "TONY YOU CAN'T. LIAR, HEARTLESS, CRUEL" and "TONY YOU CAN'T SCREW EDUCATION."