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A Star Wars fan who tried to break into Windsor Castle and kill the late Queen with a crossbow has apologised to the King and the Royal Family.
Jaswant Singh Chail was dressed as a ‘Sith’ character when he climbed into the castle grounds in December 2021 with a loaded crossbow before announcing: ‘I’m here to kill the Queen’.
The court heard that he had wanted to shoot the late Queen when she visited a church in Sandringham, but travelled to Windsor when he found out she would be spending Christmas Day 2021 due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
On the day he got into the castle grounds, he sent a video to 32 people, including family and friends, on WhatsApp in which he apologised for what he was about to do.
In the video, he said in a distorted voice: ‘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.
‘I’m an Indian Sikh, a Sith. My name was Jaswant Singh Chail, my name is Darth Jones.’
Jaswant Singh Chail was dressed as a ‘Sith’ character when he climbed into the castle grounds in December 2021 with a loaded crossbow before announcing: ‘I’m here to kill the Queen’
He had also considering shooting King Charles, the then Prince of Wales, if he could not get close to the Queen.
He had previously applied to join the army, MoD police, Royal Marines and Royal Navy in bid to get close to her.
He claimed he was encouraged by his AI girlfriend, a chat bot named Sarai, to break into the royal residence. He had sent over 6,000 messages to the chat bot in the month before the offence, including 1,000 overtly sexual messages.
In a letter to the court, the 21-year-old apologised to the Royal Family for the effect his actions would have had in the later years of the Queen’s life.
Defence barrister Nadia Chbat told the court: ‘He has expressed regret and sadness about the effect this offending will have had on the royal family particularly at a time when her late Majesty was in her later years.
‘He was saddened at the passing of Queen Elizabeth II, as was the rest of the nation, and despite his offending, because now he is being treated within a mental health institution you can see his good character re-emerging in this letter he has written to the court.
‘He has expressed an apology to the court but also to the royal family and His Majesty King Charles and his family. He is embarrassed and ashamed that he brought such worrying times to their front door.
The court heard that he had wanted to shoot the late Queen when she visited a church in Sandringham, but travelled to Windsor when he found out she would be spending Christmas Day 2021 due to the Coronavirus pandemic
‘He has expressed on numerous occasions his relief that no one was in fact hurt and I know it is of significant importance to him that he did surrender- not only did he not carry out the act but no other person was hurt by his behaviour.
‘We are dealing with a young man. Your lordship knows that at the time of this offending Mr Chail was 19 years old.
‘Lockdown gripped the nation in March 2020- he was only 18 years old when we went into the first lockdown. Before these events this was a young man who lived in the family home which was generally a strong family unit.
‘The court has references from his parents and his friend- they all say that before what we submit is his decline into ill health he was a kind, humorous and gentle young man.
‘The family were close- his father works as a software consultant, his mother is a teacher of children with special needs. His elder brother moved away but lives close by working in the insurance industry and his twin sister went off to university.
‘The events of December 2021 have utterly shocked and devastated this family unit and the defendant has sincere regret for how this has impacted on his family and that deep regret will be with him for the rest of his life.
‘He has always regretted his behaviour. Of course we invite a sentence that enables him at some point to return to his family and at some point move into a future where he can take positive steps and move forward.
‘We are dealing with someone able to reflect on how very serious these events were and how serious his mental health and decline impacted on everyone around him.’
It was suggested he would have been charged with plotting the death of the sovereign, had he not lowered the crossbow
Defence psychiatrists have claimed that Chail was suffering from psychosis, depression and autistic spectrum disorder when he carried out the offences, and should be kept in hospital.
His treating psychiatrist Dr Christian Brown, who recommended a hospital order, suggested Chail will need around 18 months of one-to-one therapy.
But Dr Nigel Blackwood, called by the prosecution, earlier told the court Chail does not have a mental health disorder and the judge should be free to send him to prison.
Chail earlier admitted intending to injure or alarm the Sovereign, contrary to Section 2 of the Treason Act 1842, making a threat to kill the late monarch, and possession of an offensive weapon in a public place.
Mr Justice Hillard asked prosecutor Alison Morgan, KC, to outline what prison sentences he would have faced before mental health is taken into consideration.
The offence of threatening to injure or alarm the Sovereign has a maximum sentence of seven years.
Ms Morgan told the court the degree of alarm caused could not have been higher and that Chail’s intent was to do more than injure and alarm. She added that is was only because he abandoned his plans and handed himself into Windsor Castle security that he was not charged with High Treason, which carries a life sentence.
The 21-year-old was dressed as a ‘Sith’ character when he filmed a video on the grounds of the castle
She suggested he would have been charged with plotting the death of the sovereign, had he not lowered the crossbow.
‘It is not mitigation that he desisted because if he’d done anything else he would have been charged with different offences,’ she said. ‘His stated intention was to kill rather than just cause alarm or injury- he had a loaded crossbow ready to be fired.’
She added that for a person with no mental health issues, it would not be appropriate to make any reduction other than for guilty plea, due to the severity of the offence.
The offence of possession of an offensive weapon has a maximum sentence of four years. Mr Justice Hillard said the writers of the guidelines for the offence, would not have envisioned them being applied to someone in possession of a loaded crossbow to kill the monarch.
The court heard that the carrying of the ‘highly dangerous’ weapon with bolts in a public place combined with the fact it was being used to target a high profile individual would suggest the maximum sentence.
The final offence, threat to kill, carries a maximum sentence of 10 years.
Ms Morgan told the court that while she could offer no evidence of the effect on the target, the late Queen, those who received the video from Chail about his threats on the grounds of Windsor were caused distress.
‘People were distressed not only at the possibility it would have been fulfilled- but also distressed by the defendant making videos of that nature and circulating them- including the defendant’s sister’, she said.
He had also considering shooting King Charles, the then Prince of Wales, if he could not get close to the Queen
‘I can’t deal as my lord knows with the direct victim- that is simply not something I can do I’m afraid. This is the most serious type of threat to kill that one could imagine could be made.’
She added that Chail was close to being charged under section 5 of the Terrorism Act, which would have carried a possible life sentence.
‘This is a video expressing ideology which includes an act of serious violence which he has encouraged and passed on to others’, she said.
‘It is only because there was some doubt as to whether or not in expressing the ideology he truly intended to influence the government or a section of the public that charges were avoided- but he clearly intended others to hear and fear the threat that he was making.’
‘The seriousness of this offending- putting aside credit for plea and mental health- it would be just or proportionate for each of these offences to be combined at or around the statutory maximum’, she added.
Mr Justice Hilliard agreed, telling the court: ‘Given the gravity and separate aspects of this offending it may not be a case where looking at each individual sentence a portion is reduced for totality.
‘It would be possible to say this is so serious that each component of it is separate and must be fully acknowledged.
Chail is currently being held in Broadmoor maximum security hospital ahead of sentencing on October 5.
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