A former supermarket worker charged under the Treason Act for attempting to break into Windsor Castle said “I am here to kill the queen”, a court heard.
Jaswant Singh Chail, 20, was held on Christmas Day last year close to the Queen’s private residence, with a line of sight to her apartments, where she was inside.
He was allegedly wearing a hood and a mask and carrying a crossbow loaded with a bolt with the safety catch off, ready to fire.
Mr Chail, from Southampton, Hampshire, is said to have told a protection officer: “I am here to kill the Queen,” before he was handcuffed and arrested, Westminster Magistrates’ Court heard.
He appeared by video-link from Broadmoor high-security psychiatric hospital in Berkshire on Wednesday charged with an offence under Section 2 of the Treason Act, possession of an offensive weapon and making threats to kill.
Mr Chail, wearing a dark jacket over a black top, sat at a table with his arms folded during the hearing, speaking to confirm his name, date of birth and current address at Broadmoor.
The most serious charge under the Treason Act states alleges that “on 25 December 2021 at Windsor Castle, near to the person of the Queen, you did wilfully produce or have a loaded crossbow with intent to use the same to injure the person of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, or to alarm her Majesty”.
A separate charge alleges Mr Chail made a threat to kill the Queen, while a third alleges he had an offensive weapon, namely a loaded crossbow, in a public place.
Mr Chail was not asked to enter pleas to any of the charges and Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring remanded him in custody ahead of his next appearance at the Old Bailey on 14 September.
The court heard Mr Chail had previously applied to join the Ministry of Defence Police and the Grenadier Guards in a bid to get close to the royal family.
Prosecutors allege he sought revenge against the establishment for the treatment of Indians and had sent a video to some 20 people claiming he was going to attempt to assassinate the Queen.
The Supersonic X-Bow weapon he is said to have been carrying had the potential to cause “serious or fatal injuries”, said prosecutor Kathryn Selby. She said the allegations were not being treated as a “terrorism offence” but had been dealt with by the Counter-Terrorism Division.
