Burak Bir
03 May 2023•Update: 04 May 2023
LONDON
A series of intrusion and trespassing attempts have so far occurred at Buckingham Palace, as well as some other criminal acts near the Palace.
A man was arrested on Tuesday after he approached the gates of Buckingham Palace and threw suspected shotgun cartridges into the Palace grounds, according to Metropolitan Police.
A controlled explosion was conducted as a precaution as the man was also found to be in possession of a suspicious bag.
In 2017, a man was detained after he drove a car at police outside Buckingham Palace, and then "reached for a four-foot sword."
Three officers were slightly injured while struggling to arrest him, police said.
Meanwhile, trespassing via climbing a wall of Buckingham Palace took place multiple times and raised questions about the security of the Royal Family.
The well-known intrusion case took place in 1982, when Michael Fagan, a 34-year-old unemployed man, intruded into Buckingham Palace twice.
In his second attempt, he even entered the bedroom of Queen Elizabeth II, while she was sleeping.
One of the most shocking breaches of royal security was reimagined in the fifth episode of season 4 of The Crown, a historical Netflix drama series about the reign of Queen Elizabeth II.
2000s
The last two decades saw a series of trespassing incidents and no harm came to any of the royal family members.
Here are some of the trespassing attempts.
In 2004, a protester dressed as "Batman" climbed a wall of Buckingham Palace, and reached a ledge adjacent to a balcony used by the royal family on ceremonial occasions.
No member of the royal family was at the residence at that time. Jason Hatch, the protester, stood on the balcony with a banner, reading: "Superdads of Fathers 4 Justice, Fighting for Your Right to See Your Kid."
The group was founded in 2011, aiming to champion the causes of equal parenting, family law reform, and equal contact for divorced parents with children.
Meanwhile, in September 2013, a security review was launched after an intruder was able to scale a fence and get inside the palace before being arrested.
In May 2016, another man was arrested after climbing a Buckingham Palace wall. The 41-year-old man was detained on suspicion of trespassing on a protected site, said the police.
Two years later, a homeless man was found sleeping on the grounds of Buckingham. 44-year-old Steven Lawlor broke poster boards and the display cabinet to use as bedding.
In 2019, an intruder was arrested after allegedly climbing into the grounds of Buckingham Palace while the queen was sleeping. According to police, the 22-year-old man scaled the front gates of the palace and was arrested on suspicion of trespassing.
In another trespassing attempt, Cameron Kalani, 44, armed with a knife and cocaine, was spotted by security guards climbing over the fence of the Royal Mews in May 2021.
A year later appearing at the court, Kalani claimed he was in a "state of psychosis" and did not realize he was climbing Buckingham Palace wall.
In December 2021, American tourist Joseph Huang Kang, 25, was caught in the toilets at the Royal Mews after trespassing into the palace.
