Man 'tackled to the floor' in incident near Queen's coffin | Metro News

2022-09-17 07:31:34 By : Mr. William Huang

A man has been arrested after seemingly making a dash towards the Queen’s coffin in Westminster Hall last night.

Footage streamed from within the building, where the late monarch is lying-in-state, was paused around 10pm.

When it re-started, the Royal Standard flag draping the coffin appeared to have been moved.

The man was reportedly ‘taken to the floor’ and removed from the hall as shocked bystanders watched on.

MailOnline reports that an individual had ‘pushed mourners out of the way’ and ‘tried to lift standard on the Queen’s coffin’.

A spokesperson from the Metropolitan Police said: ‘Around 10pm on Friday September 16, officers from the Met’s Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Command detained a man in Westminster Hall following a disturbance. 

‘He was arrested for an offence under the Public Order Act and is currently in custody.’

The force has been contacted by Metro.co.uk for additional information.

A spokesperson for UK parliament added in a statement: ‘We’re aware of an incident in Westminster Hall, in which a member of the public moved out of the queue and towards the Catafalque.

‘They have now been removed from the Hall and the queue restarted with minimal disruption.’

Mere hours before the disturbance took place, King Charles had led his siblings in tonight’s Vigil of the Princes ceremony.

Head to Metro.co.uk's Queen Elizabeth II tag page for the latest updates, and sign Metro.co.uk's book of condolence to Her Majesty here.

Princess Anne, Prince Andrew, and Prince Edward joined the new monarch for the historic event.

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Other members of the royal family, including the Queen Consort, Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence and the Countess of Wessex, along with some of the Queen’s grandchildren, had watched on.

Despite tonight’s security incident, Westminster Hall remains open overnight.

Thousands of people are still lining up, despite the cold, to see the Queen’s coffin ahead of her funeral on Monday.

Currently, the waiting times stands at 19.5 hours.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

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