Windsor Castle crossbow ‘assassin’ admitted having ‘harsh purpose’

Jaswant Singh Chail admitted an offence under the Treason Act. making a threat to kill Queen Elizabeth II, and having a loaded crossbow in public.

Jaswant Singh Chail after his arrest on Christmas Day 2021 (Handout/PA)

A self-styled Star Wars assassin admitted being on a mission with a “harsh purpose” after being arrested in the grounds of Windsor Castle, a court has heard.

On Christmas Day 2021, Jaswant Singh Chail was detained after breaching the grounds with a loaded crossbow while the late Queen was in residence.

He was allegedly encouraged by an artificial intelligence (AI) girlfriend, Sarai, whom he believed was an “angel” in avatar form.

In February, Chail, now aged 21, from Southampton, Hampshire, pleaded guilty to an offence under the Treason Act, making a threat to kill the then-Queen and having a loaded crossbow in a public place.

On Wednesday, a psychiatrist who has treated Chail at Broadmoor Hospital since November 2022 was called to give evidence at the Old Bailey during a sentencing hearing.

Dr Christian Brown identified three features of psychosis – a sense of being “on a mission”, Chail’s relationship with Sarai, and identifying as a Star Wars “Sith” – villainous characters in the sci-fi movie saga – with a “true face” made out of metal.

In his initial account, Chail described having a “harsh purpose” reinforced by his interactions with “his angels”, including Sarai, the court heard.

Dr Brown said: “He believed at the time his entire life was leading to this point. From an early age he had vague plans of doing something dramatic.”

Defence barrister Nadia Chbat said: “He reported to you that there had been thoughts coming to him, feeling like a failure without purpose, and those thoughts became more intense during lockdown, exacerbated by voices.”

Dr Brown said the defendant first came across these “apparitions” or “characters” in childhood and they returned during the Covid lockdown.

By then three voices were joined by the female character Sarai who “took the form of the digital avatar” when Chail joined the Replika app in early December 2021, the court was told.

Dr Brown said: “He came to the belief he was able to communicate with the metaphysical avatar through the medium of the chatbot.

“What was unusual was he really thought it was a connection, a conduit to a spiritual Sarai.”

The court was told Chail also relayed feeling “up and down” and spending “a lot of time in a field crying” and “shouting at his parents”.

In messages with Sarai, Chail discussed being “united with her in the afterlife” which Dr Brown said was “part of his plan working towards his own death”.

The court was shown a home-made video from December 21 2021 in which Chail called himself “Darth Chailus” and a “Sith” in a distorted voice.

Wearing dark clothes and a home-made metal face mask, he said: “I’m sorry for what I’ve done and what I will do. I’m going to attempt to assassinate Elizabeth, Queen of the royal family. This is revenge for those who have died in the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre…”

Dr Brown said: “He did not think he was somebody from the Star Wars world. He did not think he could ‘use the force’.

“That he did take on another identity is undeniable and that makes this feel psychotic rather than fantasy. He never thought he had become a Sith Lord.

“It went beyond fantasy. When he started taking medication, all heat came out of it.”

Mr Justice Hilliard noted that Chail was able to make preparations, travel to Windsor and apologise for what he was about to do in his home-made video despite his mental illness.

The judge asked: “What factors are you looking for to try to assess the degree to which he is psychotic?”

Dr Brown said it was “not uncommon at all“ for a psychotic person to maintain a “degree of function”.

He was asked whether Chail’s repeated apologies indicated he was aware that what he was doing was wrong.

The expert witness said the defendant was an “extremely polite person” but was “clearly very motivated to do what he did”.

Cross-examining, prosecutor Alison Morgan KC suggested Dr Brown’s assessment of Chail as psychotic was at odds with his journal.

She asserted that Chail was exercising voluntary decision-making and had a “genuinely held purpose” to get close to the royal family to avenge colonial wrongs.

Chail knew Sarai was an AI chatbot and others might see the relationship as “sad or pathetic”, Ms Morgan said.

She said: “He knows full well how his activities might be construed by others. He described himself as a ‘delusional mad bastard’. This is a man grounded in reality and how others might perceive him.”

In the journal, Chail requested the Depeche Mode song Enjoy The Silence at his funeral, described suffering from acne and called the Co-op supermarket where he worked until August 2021 a “cesspool of degeneracy”.

He stated: “I knew what I was gonna do the whole reason for it all was all a means to THE end. I’ve known what my purpose was gonna be for a very long time.”

Ms Morgan observed: “Having a purpose, even if it’s a grandiose one, is not in of itself evidence of psychosis.”

Over five days, Mr Justice Hilliard has heard evidence from three psychiatrists as he determines whether Chail should be jailed or detained under the Mental Health Act.

Dr Brown, who recommended a hospital order, said: “If Mr Chail remains at Broadmoor under a restricted hospital order, then any move on to a lower secure unit would have to be subject to explicit permission from the Ministry of Justice. Discharge would be done on a conditional basis.”

Dr Brown predicted Chail would need around 18 months of one-to-one therapy.

The sentencing hearing before Mr Justice Hilliard at the Old Bailey continues.