Teen who ‘tried to kill Queen with crossbow’ has apologised to the King

A man who broke into Windsor Castle with a loaded crossbow to kill the late Queen has apologised to the Royal Family for the "worrying times" he caused.

Jaswant Singh Chail, now 21, was caught on Christmas Day 2021 in the grounds of Windsor Castle intent on shooting the Monarch with the weapon. He has since admitted treason.

Chail’s barrister Nadia Chbat said he had apologised to the royal family and the King in a letter to the court, during a hearing at the Old Bailey on Friday.

Ms Chbat said: “He has expressed distress and sadness about the impact his actions had on the royal family, particularly while Her Majesty was in her latter years.”

Referring to the letter, she said: “He has apologised to the royal family and His Majesty King Charles.

“He is embarrassed and ashamed he brought such horrific and worrying times to their front door.”

Ms Chbat added: “He has expressed relief no-one was actually hurt. It is important to him there was a surrender.”

Before his mental health declined, Chail was a kind, gentle and sometimes funny person, his family and friends said.

Ms Chbat said: “He was at the time of this offending 19-years-old. Lockdown gripped the nation in March 2020. He was only 18 years old when we went into the first lockdown.”

Chail was encouraged to kill the Queen by an artificial intelligence girlfriend called Sarai, the court heard.

On the day he got into the castle grounds, Star Wars fanatic Chail sent a homemade video to family and friends on WhatsApp in which he apologised for what he was about to do and called himself “Darth Chailus”.

In the clip, the defendant, who has Sikh Indian heritage, said he was seeking revenge for the Amritsar massacre in 1919, when British troops opened fire on thousands of Indians and left up to 1,500 dead.

Chail embarked on his murderous mission after his bids to join the armed forces – to get close to the royal family – failed in late 2021, the court was told.

During Friday’s hearing, prosecutor Alison Morgan KC said Chail’s crimes were so serious they should attract the highest possible sentence.

The maximum sentence for treason is seven years in prison.

Chail, who has also admitted making a threat to kill the Queen and having a loaded crossbow, appeared in court by video link from high-security psychiatric hospital Broadmoor.

The hearing follows seven days of evidence from three psychiatrists about Chail’s mental state as Mr Justice Hilliard considers whether he should be jailed, detained under the Mental Health Act or face a “hybrid” order.

Mr Justice Hilliard will sentence Chail at the Old Bailey on October 5.

For the latest stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletter by clicking here .

Source: Read Full Article