A man has been arrested outside Buckingham Palace after throwing suspected shotgun cartridges days before the King’s Coronation, The Mirror reports.
The suspect, who was also found with a knife on his person, was caught by officers at around 7pm on Tuesday (May 2) and items recovered from the scene have been taken in for inspection.
The 59-year-old man, who was later found to have posted tributes to the late Queen Elizabeth II, was arrested and held on suspicion of possession of an offensive weapon. It has not been treated as terror-related.
Police cordoned off the area around the gates where the suspect was detained, and specialists conducted a controlled detonation of the man’s “suspicious” bag as a precaution.
“Officers worked immediately to detain the man and he has been taken into police custody,” Chief Superintendent Joseph McDonald said in a statement. “There have been no reports of any shots fired, or any injuries to officers or members of the public. Officers remain at the scene and further enquiries are ongoing.”
Neither King Charles III or Queen Consort Camilla were at Buckingham Palace at the time of the incident. Roads around Buckingham Palace have since reopened and most of the cordoned-off area is now accessible.
