Man arrested after touching Queen Elizabeth's coffin

Man arrested after touching Queen Elizabeth's coffin
Credit: Wikimedia Commons.

Thousands are standing in hour-long queues to say their last farewells to Queen Elizabeth II, whose coffin is at Westminster Hall.

But on Friday, attention centred on one man, who, according to the Guardian, jumped out of the queue, ran up the stairs to the podium and touched the queen's coffin.

Shortly after, the man was detained and arrested, confirmed Scotland Yard.

The incident is reported to have taken place just before 22:00 after which media tuned away from broadcasting the mourners and instead showed the view outside parliament.

A British Parliament spokesperson told Sky News that someone from the audience stepped out of the queue and reached for the podium with the coffin. "That person has been removed from the hall and the queue has restarted with minimal disruption."

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Earlier that evening King Charles III was joined by his siblings Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward in a vigil of the princes. A similar vigil is reported to be held Saturday evening by the Queen's grandchildren.

But the man in the queue isn't the only one to have drawn attention to happenings near the coffin. Wednesday evening a guard suddenly fainted while guarding Queen Elizabeth's coffin.

The body of Queen Elizabeth will remain at Westminster Hall until Monday when it will be transported to Westminster Abbey for the funeral.


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