Windsor Castle crossbow intruder pleads guilty to treason after Queen death threat

2023-02-03

An intruder armed with a crossbow who roamedWindsor Castle’s grounds and said "I am here to kill theQueen" has pleaded guilty to treason.

Jaswant Singh Chail scaled the perimeter of the Royal residence on Christmas Day 2021 carrying the deadly weapon while the late Queen Elizabeth was at home.

The former supermarket worker is understood to have roamed the grounds for around two hours before being spotted by protection officers.

When he was confronted close to the late Monarch’s private apartment, Chail admitted: “I am here to kill the Queen.”

The 21 year old, from Southampton, Hampshire, appeared at the Old Bailey on videolink from maximum security Broadmoor Hospital. He pleaded guilty to making a threat to kill the Queen, attempting to injure or alarm the Sovereign, contrary to Section 2 of the Treason Act 1842, and having an offensive weapon.

He is set to be sentenced on 31 March.

The Evening Standard reported that Chail, who entered the grounds of Windsor Castle with a loaded Supersonic X-Bow weapon using a nylon rope ladder, had set out his plot in a Snapchat video filmed four days earlier – saying it was in revenge for a 1919 massacre in India.

Hooded and masked, brandishing the crossbow and his voice distorted, he said: “I’m sorry. I’m sorry for what I’ve done and what I will do. I will 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. I’m an Indian Sikh, a Sith. My name was Jaswant Singh Chail, my name is Darth Jones.”

Some 379 peaceful protesters were killed and more than 1,000 injured when British troops opened fire on a crowd at the Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Amritsar.

Chail also posted on Snapchat: “If you have received this then my death is near. Please share this with whoever and if possible get it to the news if they’re interested.”

His Snapchat messages were sent to 20 contacts just after 8am, minutes before Chail was detained.

At a preliminary court hearing, prosecutor Kathryn Selby said a Royal protection officer saw Chail “walking slowly through the private grounds towards him”.

She added: “He noticed that the defendant had a hood over his head and was wearing a mask.”

Chail went on to issue the threat about killing the Queen, the prosecutor added.

She said: “The officer then realised the defendant was holding a crossbow. The officer drew his Taser and shouted at the defendant to drop the bow and drop to his knees."

It is said Chail had also previously applied to join the Ministry of Defence Police and the Grenadier Guards to get close to theRoyal Family.

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