Security standing watch at Queen Elizabeth II’s casket Friday night tackled a man who rushed the casket to touch it.
The live broadcast of the late monarch lying in state captured a man escaping the line, running up the catafalque, the stage where the casket sits, and briefly touching the casket before being tackled off of the catafalque and onto the floor at Westminster Hall. Guards carried the man out of the building, where he was ultimately arrested.
“Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Command detained a man in Westminster Hall following a disturbance,” Scotland Yard reported, adding he was “arrested for an offence under the Public Order Act and is currently in custody.”
WATCH: DAVID BECKHAM WAITS 12 HOURS IN LINE TO SEE QUEEN ELIZABETH II’S COFFIN
Man arrested after attempting to rush Queen Elizabeth’s coffin https://t.co/hrTOqxJ1LZ pic.twitter.com/pyFw9FPd04
— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) September 17, 2022
A deployment of 10,000 police officers has been on duty as Queen Elizabeth II’s memorial service began last week, following her death on Thursday. The City of London’s police has implemented “vehicle barriers, road closures and specialist teams carrying out searches in and around event locations, and Project Servator officers, who are specially-trained to spot tell-tale signs that someone may be planning to commit a crime,” according to its website.
Security is reportedly costing $7.5 million, with the Sovereign’s Bodyguard, the Household Division, and the Yeoman Warders of the Tower of London standing watch.
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Officials for the Department of Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport closed the line for six hours Friday as it stretched over 5 miles. There is an estimated wait time of 13 hours.
