A man was arrested after he tried to grab the Queen's coffin in Westminster Hall, while other mourners watched in shock. Onlookers said the man tried to touch the Queen's coffin. Officers immediately tacked the man to the floor during the shocking incident that took place around 10 pm in front of dozens of horrified mourners at Westminster Hall on Friday.
The incident was caught on camera but soon after the incident but the live streams of the coffin were cut out for around 15 minutes. It is believed that the man was trying to reveal Her Majesty's coffin underneath the flag as she lies in state.
Vigil Interrupted
Hundreds of thousands of mourners are believed to have passed through the hall in the last two days despite queue times stretching up to 24 hours. The tragedy on Friday night, which happened only hours after King Charles and his family conducted a vigil in memory of the Queen, left mourners clearly disturbed.
The newly crowned monarch stood guards next to his mother's casket alongside siblings Anne, Andrew, and Edward when the incident happened.
Shocking scenes saw the intruder bolt up the stairs leading up to the catafalque. A seven-year-old girl was reportedly among the mourners the man pushed past before he raced up to the casket and attempted to lift the royal flag. He is then believed to have put his hands on the Queen's casket.
Screenshots of the broadcast of the solemn ceremony show security personnel pinning the suspect to the ground while other mourners watch in shock. The Royal Standard, the sovereign's official flag, can be seen being relocated in footage from both before and after the incident.
The Queen has been lying in state at Westminster Hall since her casket was brought from Buckingham Palace on Wednesday so that mourners might pay their respects.
"Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Command detained a man in Westminster Hall following a disturbance," Scotland Yard reportedly said.
He was "arrested for an offence [sic] under the Public Order Act and is currently in custody," the statement reportedly continued.
Completely Unexpected
The disruption took place on the second day the public was invited to pass in front of the queen's coffin. One witness who saw the incident unfold in front of her eyes told MailOnline how a mourner "screamed" when she saw the man running at the coffin.
"We saw him (the man) in the queue from the beginning of the queue and throughout the day, he was by himself," the witness said.
"When we entered the room we were at the top of the stairs when we saw the incident. A lady screamed as it happened it was quite unnerving. Although he was detained and people kept calm and carried on."
One witness told The Sun: "We thought someone had fainted and then we heard someone shriek. Someone got up to the coffin, grabbed the flag and pulled it upwards."
"They picked up the bottom and wafted it, almost to see what was underneath. It happened so fast."
The witness also said that the scene was "extremely disturbing, adding, "It's such disrespect to the body. Just not what you thought you would ever see."
Another witness Tracey Holland, whose niece Darcy, 7, was pushed aside by the man as he charged at the casket described the shocking incident. "A person decided they were going to push my seven-year-old niece out the way, run up to the coffin, lift up the standard and try to do I don't know what. She was grabbed out the way and the police had him within two seconds.
"It was terrible, absolutely terrible, so disrespectful and unbelievable - and this poor little seven-year-old child, this is her lasting memory of the Queen."
In another incident on Friday, a man was arrested earlier for allegedly sexually abusing two women who had lined up to see the queen's casket.
As big crowds gathered to pay their respects to Queen Elizabeth, who passed away last week at the age of 96, police presence has been increased around London. The New York Post reported that a record $7.5 million had been paid to beef up security for her funeral on Monday at Westminster Abbey.
