Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

News

Buckingham Palace on Lockdown After Man Arrested for Throwing Shotgun Cartridges

A man was being held this morning by police on suspicion of possessing a weapon after ‘throwing shotgun cartridges’ into the grounds of Buckingham Palace.

Met Police detained him at around 7pm last night after he approached the gates of the palace in central London as Coronation rehearsals took place.

Witnesses said the man was seen throwing a ‘number of items’ in the residence grounds before he was arrested.

News footage shows how the handcuffed suspect hung his head as officers took him into custody. Police later carried out a controlled explosion on a suspicious bag as a precaution.

A witness told The Sun that the suspect had stationed himself outside the palace over the ‘last few nights’ and was heard shouting: ‘I’m going to kill the King.’

Police say they are not currently treating the incident as terror-related. It is understood it is being treated as an isolated mental health incident.

Buckingham Palace confirmed the King and Queen were not in residence when the incident occurred. But a Royal spokesperson would not answer whether any other relatives or family members were there when it unfolded.

Police cordoned off the area outside the palace after the suspect began targeting the royal residence.

Met Police chief superintendent Joseph McDonald said officers ‘worked immediately to detain the man’ – who is currently in custody.

A witness alleged that officers ‘jumped’ on the man ‘as soon as he placed the bag on the ground’.

‘They were shouting at him “get down on the floor,”‘ the witness told The Sun, adding that it was ‘astonishing’ that the man was even able to get that close to the Palace with the Coronation just days away.

Royal super fans who are camped along The Mall told MailOnline they were shocked after the ‘big bang’ from the controlled explosion went off at Buckingham Palace.

While none saw the incident, many remarked they had heard a bang that sounded like a ‘gunshot’ as authorities detonated the suspected shotgun cartridges thrown over the fence.

Mary-Jane Willows, who has camped out at multiple royal events including the Diamond Jubilee, said: ‘The police threw a cordon up and there was a bang.’

But she added that royal super fans wouldn’t let the person responsible ruin their fun and he would be quickly forgotten when the event got closer.

‘Let’s rub him away and forget about him’, she said.

One passerby remarked it was worrying, but the police had acted swiftly.

The person, who asked to remain anonymous, said: ‘It’s concerning that someone would do something like this. Why would you want to do that? Everyone’s so excited about Saturday, it’s a shame someone wants to ruin that.

‘But the police seemed to have it under control, we didn’t know anything had happened until the big explosion.’

Met Police said the suspect was detained at around 7pm after he approached the palace’s gates in central London and threw a number of items.

He was held on suspicion of possession of an offensive weapon after he was searched and a knife was found, but he was not carrying a gun.

Cordons were put in place after he was found with a ‘suspicious bag’ but have since been removed, the force added.

The bag held two passports, a phone, wallet, keys, bank cards, laptop case, picture of a child, and a large brown letter, according to The Sun. There was also a copy of the book The Happiness Advantage by Harvard lecturer Shawn Achor.

A controlled explosion was conducted as a precaution, Scotland Yard said, and the detonation was heard live on GB News.

The items thrown into the palace grounds ‘have been recovered and will be taken for specialist examination’, the Met said.

There were no reports of any shots fired, or any injuries to officers or members of the public.

‘Officers remain at the scene and further inquiries are ongoing,’ added Mr McDonald.

MP Jacob Rees-Mogg was presenting from the palace for GB News while police carried out the controlled explosion.

The politician told MailOnline that he arrived at Buckingham Palace around 7.20pm, after the man had already been arrested.

‘It was all a bit odd,’ Mr Rees-Mogg recalled. ‘It wasn’t closed off yet.’

The MP, who was evacuated as the incident unfolded, added: ‘It wasn’t much at all. We could’ve carried on broadcasting rather than evacuating.’

Mr Rees-Mogg said that despite the incident, he has no safety concerns for the upcoming Coronation festivities.

Noting how the suspect ‘wasn’t near the King,’ Mr Rees-Mogg stated: ‘An event with millions of people poses some element of risk. The question is getting the balance right.’

He said the ‘key to this is not to overreact’ and believes the risk posed with the Coronation is ‘proportionate to scale of event’.

The arrest comes as police and security services prepare for King Charles’ coronation on Saturday, which is expected to see large crowds line the streets of London and heads of state from around the world attend the formal coronation ceremony.

TOP STORIES

News

2 min readPresident Donald Trump gathered with House Republican leaders at the White House on Thursday to relay his tax priorities. In the meeting,...

News

3 min readBefore the Trump administration closed USAID’s doors, the agency regularly routed funding to causes aligned with George Soros’ nonprofit empire, terrorists and...

News

2 min readOn Thursday, President Donald Trump ordered the termination of all media contracts within the General Services Administration (GSA). This comes after it...

News

2 min readPresident Donald Trump announced on Thursday that he will sign an executive order to create a task force that will “eradicate anti-Christian...

Advertisement