Windsor Castle armed intruder had plan 'to kill' senior royals: report

An armed man, who arrived at Windsor Castle with an aim "to kill" the late Queen, was reportedly inspired by the Star Wars films, a court has heard.

Jaswant Singh Chail was arrested on Christmas Day 2021 when Queen Elizabeth II was living at Windsor due to the pandemic.

He was spotted by a royal security officer in a private section of the castle grounds on 25 December 2021. He later pleaded guilty to a charge under the Treason Act and also admitted making threats to kill and possessing an offensive weapon.

Under the 1842 Treason Act, it is an offence to assault the monarch or have a firearm, or offensive weapon in their presence with intent to injure or alarm them, or to cause a breach of peace.

The man, who was armed with crossbow, demonstrated an ideology focused on demolishing old empires and creating a new one, including in the fictional context such as Star Wars, the court was also told. 

He was was 19 at the time of the offences. His weapon was found to be comparable to a powerful air rifle with the potential to cause fatal injury.

The court was also told he had applied for positions within the Ministry of Defence Police, British Army, Royal Marines and Royal Navy, but his applications were rejected.

Prosecutor Alison Morgan KC said the "defendant's key motive was to create a new empire by destroying the remnants of the British Empire in the UK" and "the focal point of that became removal of the figurehead of the Royal Family".

The man's thinking was informed partly by the fantasy world of Star Wars and "the role of Sith Lords in shaping the world. He was attracted to the notoriety that would accrue in the event of the completion of his 'mission'," she added.

Chail, from Hampshire, had described himself as a "Sith" and "Darth Jones" in a video and confided his murderous plan to an Artificial Intelligence companion, reports BBC.

He also wrote in a journal that if the Queen was "unobtainable" he would "go for" the prince as a "suitable figurehead", in an apparent reference to King Charles, according to the same outlet.

Chail, born in Winchester and his family is of Indian Sikh heritage, was reportedly "concerned" with the "injustice" of the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre.

The man, in a video shown to the court, was dressed all in black, wearing a mask and holding a crossbow, telling the camera: "I'm sorry. I'm sorry for what I've done and what I will do. I'm going to attempt to assassinate Elizabeth Queen of the Royal Family. This is revenge for those who have died in the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre. It is also revenge for those who have been killed, humiliated, and discriminated on because of their race."

In 1981, Marcus Sarjeant was jailed for five years under the section of the Treason Act after he fired blank shots at the Queen while she was riding down The Mall in London during the Trooping the Colour parade.