'Egg boy' Will Connolly who confronted Australian senator Fraser Anning honoured with mural

A teenager hailed a “hero” for egging an Australian senator who shared anti-Muslim views in the aftermath of the New Zealand shooting has had a mural made in his honour.

Far-right senator Fraser Anning sparked outrage on Friday when he said the mosque terror attacks, which left at least 50 people dead, “highlight growing fears” over an “increasing Muslim presence”.

In response, William Connolly, who has since been nicknamed “egg boy”, cracked an egg over Mr Anning’s head as he spoke to reporters during a live TV broadcast in Melbourne.

The 17-year-old, from Victoria, has now been honoured with a huge mural in Hosier Lane in Melbourne, which has become famous for its street art in recent years.

The artwork is believed to have been painted by Van T Rudd, who posted a picture of the mural on Instagram on Sunday and wrote: “A tribute to egg boy and his glorious response to Australian politician Fraser Anning’s support of extreme right wing terror.”

Two days after the teenager’s actions went viral, more than $47,000 has been raised on a GoFundMe page to pay for his legal fees and to help him “buy more eggs”.

Police allege the teenager assaulted the senator with the egg. Mr Anning "retaliated and struck the teen twice" before Mr Connolly was dragged to the ground by supporters of the senator, police said.

A police statement said: "The incident is being actively investigated by Victoria Police in its entirety.”

Mr Anning came under blistering criticism over tweets on Friday, including one that said: "Does anyone still dispute the link between Muslim immigration and violence?"

"The real cause of the bloodshed on New Zealand streets today is the immigration program which allowed Muslim fanatics to migrate to New Zealand in the first place," he said in a later statement.

Mr Anning has now been assigned a federal police security detail in the wake of his comments.

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern for the first time on Sunday joined the public condemnation of Mr Anning, calling his comments a “disgrace."

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison also took Mr Connolly's side, telling reporters: "The full force of the law should be applied to Senator Anning."

After the egging, which was filmed by the teenager, Mr Connolly was pinned to the ground until journalists appealed for him to be allowed back on his feet, The Sun-Herald newspaper reported.

Far-right activist Neil Erikson, who was involved in tackling the 17-year-old, shouted for reporters to be removed from the area.

"Get the journalists out of here... If you don't like, get out," Mr Erikson was quoted as saying.

Police say they arrested Mr Connolly, took his details and then released him without charge.

The teenager later urged his followers not to follow his example.

"Don't egg politicians. You get tackled by 30 bogans at the same time," he said in a video, using Australian slang for a poor, ignorant white person. "I learnt the hard way."