Buckingham Palace is seen in central London March 2, 2013. REUTERS/Olivia Harris
LONDON | Mon Oct 14, 2013 4:21pm BST
(Reuters) - Police arrested a man carrying a knife on Monday as he tried to gain entry to Buckingham Palace, the London residence of The Queen, just a month after another security incident at the central London building.
The 44-year-old man was searched then detained on suspicion of trespassing on a protected site and possessing an offensive weapon, a police spokesman said. The man remains in custody at a London police station.
A spokesman for Buckingham Palace said the queen was not in the building at the time and declined to comment further, saying it was a matter for the police.
The palace is only open at limited times to public visitors and police said the man tried to enter via the north centre gate, the site's busiest entrance for staff and deliveries, shortly before noon. No one was injured in the incident.
It comes a month after police arrested two men over a break-in at the palace, in one of the most serious security breaches there in around 30 years.
One man was found inside the palace and was arrested for burglary, trespass and criminal damage and a second was arrested outside on suspicion of conspiracy to commit burglary. Both were bailed and are due back before police this week.
Two days later, Queen Elizabeth's son, Prince Andrew, was confronted by armed police in the gardens of the palace and asked to verify his identity. Police later apologised for failing to recognise the prince.
One of the biggest security breaches at Buckingham Palace happened in 1982 when an intruder, Michael Fagan, climbed a wall and wandered into a room where the queen was in bed.
(Reporting by Belinda Goldsmith; editing by Gareth Jones and Tom Pfeiffer)
Buckingham Palace intruder 'wanted to talk to Queen about his benefits'
David Belmar, the man who was arrested on Monday trying to get into Buckingham Palace with a six-inch knife, told police he wanted to see the Queen to complain about his benefits, a court has heard.
David Belmar said he wanted to see the Queen when he tried to get into Buckingham Palace armed with a knife Photo: CENTRAL NEWS
By Gordon Rayner, Chief Reporter
3:20PM BST 15 Oct 2013
Belmar, who has been in trouble before because of a fixation with the Queen, admitted trespass and possession of a bladed article when he appeared before Westminster Magistrates Court today.
He was rugby-tackled to the ground by police after he jumped a vehicle barrier to get onto the forecourt of the Palace, and was described in court as "a danger to the Queen". The 44-year-old from Haringey, north London, was watched by a crowd of around 20 tourists as he tried to run through the palace's north centre gate just before 11.30am on Monday.
When police searched Belmar after bringing him to the ground, they found the kitchen knife wrapped in a plastic bag in his jacket pocket. Edward Aydin, prosecuting, told the court: "In police custody, he said to the police 'I wanted to see the Queen. I'm not happy about my benefits'."
He added that Belmar, who has mental health issues for which he is taking medication, received a caution in 1989 for lighting fireworks and throwing them into the grounds of Buckingham Palace. The Queen was not in the building at the time of the incident, Buckingham Palace said.
Belmar, who appeared in court wearing a black jumper with an Umbro logo and blue jeans, went to the front of Buckingham Palace at 11.29am, Mr Aydin said. He told the court Mr Belmar, who is of a stocky build, was seen to suddenly break into a run.
"He then turned into the grounds of the palace and jumped over the vehicle barrier by putting his foot on that barrier," said Mr Aydin. "Two police officers, armed, one of them shouted: 'Stop!' - he continued to run.
"As you can see he's quite a large man. He was rugby tackled to the ground because he wouldn't stop. Police called out on two occasions."
He added that other officers rushed to help apprehend Belmar. A number of children were at the gates of the palace watching while the incident was unfolding, the court heard.
"Armed guards had to stop him," said Mr Aydin. "He could have been fired upon. Other people could have been hurt. And there was a risk of some form of disorder there outside the palace."
Belmar was under the care of mental health services from 2002 to 2010 and lives with his father and brother, both of whom sat in the court's public gallery for today's hearing.
Mr Aydin said Belmar was a man with a long history of mental illness who is a danger to himself. He added: "His behaviour that morning, yesterday, was unpredictable. He is a danger to the public, carrying a knife in central London, and he is a danger to the Queen."
Robert Katz, defending, denied Belmar has a fixation with the Queen or Buckingham Palace. He said his client had been on incapacity benefit for the past 10 years but that it was stopped after he was assessed in September.
Mr Katz said: "He became very upset by that decision and he didn't know how he was going to cope." He added that Belmar did not brandish the knife and was not going to use it, but that he had "wanted to draw publicity to what had happened to him".
Belmar has a number of previous convictions, including for actual bodily harm and criminal damage. Mr Aydin told the court that Belmar becomes violent when taking some of his medication for mental health problems. Chief Magistrate Riddle said the case was too serious to be dealt with in the magistrates' court, given his past convictions.
Making his decision to remand Belmar in custody, he accepted he was living in the community on prescription medication but added: "Something has clearly gone wrong.
"If it could go wrong yesterday, being granted bail there is a real risk, until he is properly assessed and perhaps further medication prescribed. "He is a danger not just to himself but to others."
He adjourned sentencing so that pre-sentence reports could be prepared and remanded Belmar in custody until he is sentenced at Southwark Crown Court at a date yet to be set.
