Home Secretary Priti Patel has ordered a review of the current rules surrounding crossbow ownership after an armed intruder who allegedly threatened to assassinate the Queen broke into the grounds of Windsor Castle.
Crossbows can be purchased by anyone above the age 18 without any license or regulatory requirements.
Crossbows can be purchased from online retailers including Amazon for as little as £60 while more powerful weapons can be found at specialised retailers at higher prices.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the Home Office stated that the department was instructed to examine possible options to “strengthen control” on weapons.
The spokesperson stated that crossbows were subject to regulations and legislation was in place to address those using them as weapons.
Priti Patel (Home Secretary) has asked for a review to the current rules around crossbow ownership. This is after an intruder armed with a videotape threatening to kill the Queen, broke into Windsor Castle grounds on Christmas Day
“At the request of the Home Secretary, we are looking at options for strengthening controls on crossbows. The year has seen continued work on the issue, with all applicable laws being reviewed to ensure public safety.
The arrest came after a 19-year old man was taken to Windsor Castle, allegedly for possessing a crossbow.
Metropolitan Police claimed that the man had been taken under section in compliance with the Mental Health Act.
Around 24 minutes earlier, the suspected, named as Jaswant Singh Chail, is believed to have sent to friends a video on Snapchat which showed a masked figure in a dark hoodie holding a crossbow and addressing the camera.
The video shows the man saying that he would like to “assassinate Queen” in revenge.
Experts demanded that the police “step up” to protect the royals while they are spending more time at Windsor Castle.
And Chail’s father, Jasbir Singh Chail, 57, a software engineer who runs an IT company from the family’s £500,000 four-bed home on a private estate in the village of North Baddesley, Hampshire, yesterday told MailOnline something had gone ‘horribly wrong’ with his son.
According to The Daily Telegraph, Whitehall sources claim that officials received instructions from Whitehall to “incorporate any lessons” learned during the Windsor Castle arrest and review crossbow laws earlier in the year.
He stated, “We are trying out to figure it out what.”
“We haven’t had the chance to meet him, but we’re trying to get his help.
“We’re going through difficult times. It’s difficult to fix this problem.
The video shows a 19-year old man wearing a mask and covering his face, aiming a crossbow black at the camera. He is pledging to kill the monarch as revenge for the massacre of 1919 Amritsar (or Jallianwala bagh) in which hundreds of Indian protestors were killed by British soldiers.
Chail speaks in an artificially rich voice, which he digitally distorts: “If you have heard this then my death nears.”
He said, “I am sorry.” It’s a pity that I did what I did and will repeat it. I’ll attempt to kill Elizabeth Queen of the Royal Family.
It is a vengeance for the victims of the Jallianwala bagh massacre in 1919.
“It’s also revenge on those who were humiliated, killed or discriminated against because of their race.”
After the intruder was taken into custody in castle grounds, police confirmed that a crossbow had been found while the queen (pictured giving the annual Christmas Day speech), was at residence.
It is a crime for someone under 18 years old to possess or purchase a crossbow. Anyone selling a crossbow can also be an offense.
Crossbows are also considered to be offensive weapons. They cannot be used in public without permission from lawful authority.
After the April five-day inquiry into Shane Gilmer’s death, there were initial demands for stricter regulations of crossbows.
Anthony Lawrence, a neighbour of Mr Gilmer (30 years old), broke into his home with a crossbow and shot Laura Sugden and him. Sugden survived.
After the inquest Ms. Sugden stated that the government had forgotten about the lethal weapon in its strategy to combat knife and gun crime.
In May, Professor Paul Marks (coroner) submitted to Ms Patel a report in which he expressed concern that there was ‘no ongoing control, record, or licensing requirement for crossbows’. This is in contrast with firearms.
He stated that the police do not have any records of crossbow owners, storage locations, or numbers in circulation.
Jaswant Chail (pictured), posted a prerecorded Snapchat Video at 8:06 a.m. on Christmas Day. It was uploaded 24 minutes prior to a Windsor Castle-based man being arrested.
According to the coroner, the Government was asked by the Coroner to revise the Crossbows Act 1987 (and the Offensive Weapons Act 2019) ‘with the intent of regulating sales and possession of lethal weapons.
Chail was a suspected Windsor intrusion. Schoolmates described him as an eccentric who made others laugh by telling inappropriate jokes.
According to one, he said last night that he had always been a bit strange and was quiet the majority of the time.
Chail – known to his friends as Jas – is believed to have sent the video to friends on Snapchat at 8.06am on Christmas Day.
After he had used a rope ladder, he allegedly climbed the Cambridge Gate fence around 8.29am.
According to security sources, after entering the royal estate the intruder ‘didn’t know what to make of himself’ and was swiftly arrested.
His father, Jasbir Singh Chail, 57, who runs an IT company from the family’s £500,000 home in Hampshire, yesterday said something had gone ‘horribly wrong’ with his son
500 metres from the Queen’s apartments within the castle grounds where she was having breakfast, the intruder was located.
She was informed of the breach and was soon joined by other senior royals, including the Prince and Duchess Of Cornwall, Earl and Countess de Wessex.
Prince Andrew, accompanied by a protective officer, was seen taking the Long Walk with his Range Rover just minutes after the police arrived to arrest the intruder.
He was taken away from Cambridge Gate. Prince Charles and Camilla reached the estate about 10:15 AM.
After being declared medically unfit for normal processing, doctors sectioned the Christmas Day intruder under the Mental Health Act.
Scotland Yard took the investigation of Thames Valley Police’s Boxing Day incident and said that the suspect is still under the care of doctors.
After the incident, armed police officers were stationed at Windsor Castle’s Henry VIII Gate as a precautionary measure.
Now detectives and doctors examine the odd footage, in which Chail seems to make references to Star Wars villains.
“I am an Indian Sikh and a Sith. He says, “My name was Jaswant Chail. My name is Darth Jones.” This could be an allusion to Jedi knights enemies who abuse the force to their detriment.
A framed image of Sith Lord Darth Maulgus is hidden behind Chail.
Chail, a detective investigating the motives for his revenge against the century-old massacres of Indian Sikhs, visited many gurdwaras in Hampshire, Sikh temples to see if Chail had connections to organised religion.
However, he was never believed to have been regular worshipper of the Lord and was therefore not present at the temples located in Southampton.
Friends reported that Chail is a former student at Toynbee School, Chandler’s Ford. His twin sister achieved high grades in school, and now studies international relations at the university.
After Christmas Day’s security panic, officers armed with guns were stationed at Windsor Castle entrances
She shared her interest in Star Wars with her brother, according to social media. According to a friend, they had been ‘inseparable as kids’.
An ex-colleague, who didn’t want to be identified, stated that he seemed normal.
He is not different from any other person. One incident involved him in a brawl with another person, but this was back when his age was 13.
Chail’s parents married in Britain in 1993 and have lived in Lancashire and the Midlands before settling in the Hampshire village home they bought for £390,000 in 2015.
The family was described by neighbors as quiet but friendly and they were stunned to witness a massive police presence at the house on Christmas Day.
This was the fourth security breach at Windsor in this year’s history. The other was an intrusion by a 44-year-old woman who claimed she was Prince Andrew’s fiancee.
Dai Davies is the ex-head of royal protection for Scotland Yard. Although he was disturbed to hear about the use of a crossbow in the attack, security personnel did a great job of apprehending and capturing the intruder quickly.
He stated that he believed the police had taken action as soon as the alarm was activated on the fence and arrested him quickly.
This was just the outermost layer of security. He would face many layers and have many responses.
“There are always learnings to be made and the company will conduct an internal inquiry now to find out how they could have improved their responses.”
Scotland Yard confirmed that the man was still in the custody of professionals while full details are investigated. The statement added, “Security procedures were activated in less than a minute of the man entering grounds. He didn’t enter any buildings.”
After a series of deadly attacks, the unregulated sale of crossbows has been called into question
Shane Gilmer (above), was killed when Lawrence accidentally fired a crossbowbol. It broke his arm, ripped his ribs and damaged his kidney. The bolt became embedded in his spine.
In recent years, several prominent attacks that involved crossbows have led to the questioning of their unregulated sale.
After the April five-day inquiry into Shane Gilmer’s death, there were initial demands for stricter regulations of crossbows.
Anthony Lawrence, a neighbour of Mr Gilmer (30 years old), broke into his home with a crossbow and shot Laura Sugden and him. Sugden survived.
In March, a double-killer who used a crossbow to murder his own brother and a rival gang member was ordered to serve a minimum term of 33 years.
Saghawat, a 47-year-old drug dealer, shot and killed Khuzaimah Doug, a kickboxer, shortly after injuring Waseem Ramzan (36), by mistake in a raid at the family’s marijuana factory in Brierley Hill.
Saghawat RAMZ used Crossbow to kill Waseem Ramzan, his brother.
After he fatally wounded Gerald Corrigan in North Wales, Terence Whall, a sports therapist was sentenced to life imprisonment in February 2013.
Corrigan had been a teacher in photo and video.
Karen Dixon, Crown Prosecution Service, called crossbows “deadly silent weapons that could cause horrendous injuries” after Whall was convicted.
A ‘cold blooded’ crossbow murderer who killed his pregnant ex-wife as revenge was sentenced to life imprisonment with a term minimum of 33 years.
Mark Waterfall (46), shot a GP using a crossbow to win in 2018.
Ramanodge Unmathallegadoo (51), burst into Sana Muhammad’s home and shot an arrow in her stomach. She fled upstairs in a “brutal and wicked attack”.
Mrs. Muhammad, 35 years old, died after suffering severe internal injuries during the East London shooting.
In 2018, the son of a patient Mark Waterfall shot a GP with a crossbow in Watford, Hertfordshire, because he blamed Dr Gary Griffith for the death of his father four days earlier in hospital.
Waterfall had told Waterfall that the bolt was a metal tipped bolt before firing it.
Waterfall was convicted of attempted murder, and sentenced to 20 years in prison.