Armed intruder arrested in Windsor Castle grounds as Queen Elizabeth celebrates Christmas – WSVN 7News | Miami News, Weather, Sports

(CNN) – An armed intruder has been arrested inside the grounds of Windsor Castle where British Queen Elizabeth II and some of her family were spending Christmas, Thames Valley police said on Saturday.

A 19-year-old Southampton man who was in possession of “an offensive weapon” was captured shortly after 8:30 am local time and remains in custody, police said.

According to the police statement, officers from Thames Valley and the Metropolitan Police responded to the security breach within minutes. The man did not enter any building, police said.

“The man was arrested on suspicion of violation or intrusion into a protected site and possession of an offensive weapon. He remains in custody at the moment, ”Thames Valley Police Superintendent Rebecca Mears said in the statement. “Members of the royal family have been made aware of the incident,” she added.

The 95-year-old monarch was celebrating Christmas at Windsor Castle after making the decision not to travel to Sandringham, his usual Christmas destination, due to the pandemic.

She was accompanied to Windsor by her son, Prince Charles, and Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall.

The Queen delivered her annual Christmas broadcast from Windsor Castle, devoting much of the traditional speech to Prince Philip, her 73-year-old husband who died in April at the age of 99.

Although not common, intrusions into royal palaces do occur occasionally. Perhaps the most famous incident dates back to 1982 when a man named Michael Fagan, who was 31 at the time, scaled a wall in Buckingham Palace, crawled through an open window and walked over. directed to the bedroom of Queen Elizabeth II, who was sleeping.

The Queen was not injured, although the intrusion raised serious questions about the safety of the palace, particularly when it emerged that her repeated attempts to seek help had been ignored.

In 2004, a father’s rights activist disguised as Batman escaped security to stage a protest on a balcony at Buckingham Palace. Jason Hatch, a Fathers 4 Justice activist, used a ladder to scale the perimeter fence before climbing to the balcony, where members of the Royal Family appear at ceremonies such as the wedding of Prince William and Catherine in 2011. Stand-up comedian Aaron Barschak underlined lax security by smashing the doors to Prince William’s 21st birthday party in Windsor in 2003.

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