London:
The Indian father of a 19-year-old boy, who is detained under Britain’s Mental Health Act after being arrested for entering the grounds of Queen Elizabeth II’s Windsor Castle with a crossbow, has spoken of the family’s fears over the incident.
Jasbir Chail, 58, said his son Jaswant needed help after climbing the walls of the castle in Berkshire, south-east England, on Christmas Day while the 95-year-old monarch was in residence.
A video later released on social media, reviewed by Scotland Yard, in which a masked man identifying himself as Indian Sikh Jaswant Singh Chail says he wanted to “kill” the queen as revenge for the massacre of Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar. in 1919.
“Something has gone terribly wrong with our son and we are trying to figure out what. We haven’t had a chance to talk to him but are trying to give him the help he needs,” Jasbir told The Times. .
“From our perspective, we are going through a difficult time. We are trying to solve this problem and it is not easy,” he said.
According to the newspaper, the suspect’s parents are registered directors of an IT company and live with the teenager and his twin sister in an estate house in the village of North Baddesley in Hampshire, south-east England. Scotland Yard agents have been seen at the property since Sunday.
“I will try to kill Elizabeth, Queen of the Royal Family. This is revenge for those who died in the Jallianwala Bagh massacre in 1919,” the masked suspect is told in the Snapchat video in a distorted voice.
“It is also revenge for those who have been killed, humiliated and discriminated against because of their race. I am an Indian Sikh, a Sith. My name was Jaswant Singh Chail, my name is Darth Jones,” he adds.
Sith refers to villains in ‘Star Wars’ movies who take ‘Darth’ as their title.
A former classmate of the suspect from Toynbee School in Hampshire said Chail had done well in high school. The 19-year-old girl, who declined to be named, told the newspaper: “He was nerdy, but not in a ‘I’m so smart’ way…he was pretty normal.” She said that during his time at school “he never had many views on anything related to racism”, adding: “I don’t know if lockdowns affect him or anything.” A message sent alongside the suspect’s Snapchat video read: “I’m sorry to everyone I’ve wronged or lied to.
“If you’ve received this, then my death is near. Please share this with anyone and if possible bring it to the news if they’re interested.” The incident was the fifth person to cause a security scare at Windsor Castle in the past nine months and was caught on CCTV within seconds by security officers on site. Meanwhile, British Home Secretary Priti Patel is said to have instructed department officials to “consider options to strengthen controls” on weapons such as a crossbow recovered in the latest security breach.
“This has been worked on throughout the year and we are monitoring all relevant laws to maintain public safety,” a spokesman for the Interior Ministry said.