British police said on Monday they were assessing a video purportedly made by a man who tried to break into a castle where Queen Elizabeth II was spending Christmas in which he said he wanted to kill her.
In the video, obtained by The Sun tabloid, a masked figure in a dark hoodie holding a crossbow claims he will “attempt to assassinate Elizabeth, Queen of the Royal Family”.
The figure addresses the camera with a distorted voice and identifies himself as an Indian Sikh intent on “revenge” for an infamous 1919 massacre of Sikhs in British-ruled India.
The video was shared on the social media platform Snapchat, around 24 minutes before a suspect was detained early on Christmas Day by armed police within the grounds of Windsor Castle, west of London.
The 19-year-old arrested is being held for mental health treatment, after officers recovered a crossbow during the brief security breach, according to London’s Metropolitan police.
“Following the man’s arrest, detectives are assessing the contents of a video,” the force said Monday.
It has said security processes were triggered “within moments” of the man entering the castle grounds at around 08:30 GMT Saturday and that he did not enter any buildings.
The incident occurred as the Queen spent a low-key Christmas Day there with her eldest son and heir to the throne Prince Charles and his wife Camilla. AFP
