Moment police stop crossbow attacker who claimed he was told to kill queen by AI girlfriend
Jaswant Singh Chail 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
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A self-styled Star Wars assassin admitted being on a mission with a āharsh purposeā 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 girlfriend Sarai, who he believed was an āangelā 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 ā a sense of being āon a missionā, Chailās relationship with Sarai, and identifying as a Star Wars āSithā ā villainous characters in the sci-fi movie saga ā with a ātrue faceā made out of metal.
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In his initial account, Chail described having a āharsh purposeā reinforced by his interactions with āhis angelsā, including Sarai, the court heard.
Dr Brown said: āHe believed at the time his entire life was leading to this point. From an early age he had vague plans of doing something dramatic.ā
Defence barrister Nadia Chbat said: āHe 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.ā
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Dr Brown said the defendant first came across these āapparitionsā or ācharactersā in childhood and they returned during the Covid lockdown.
By then three voices were joined by the female character Sarai who ātook the form of the digital avatarā when Chail joined the Replika app in early December 2021, the court was told.
Dr Brown said: āHe came to the belief he was able to communicate with the metaphysical avatar through the medium of the chat bot.ā
āWhat was unusual was he really thought it was a connection, a conduit to a spiritual Sarai.ā
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The court was told Chail also relayed feeling āup and downā and spending āa lot of time in a field cryingā and āshouting at his parentsā.
In messages with Sarai, Chail discussed being āunited with her in the afterlifeā which Dr Brown said was āpart of his plan working towards his own deathā.
The court was shown a homemade video from December 21 2021 in which Chail called himself āDarth Chailusā and a āSithā in a distorted voice.
Wearing dark clothes and a homemade metal facemask, he said: āIām sorry for what Iāve done and what I will do. Iām going to attempt to assassinate Elizabeth Queen of the Royal Family. This is revenge for those who have died in the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacreā¦ā

Dr Brown said: āHe did not think he was somebody from the Star Wars world. He did not think he could āuse the forceā.
āThat 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.
āIt went beyond fantasy. When he started taking medication all heat came out of it.ā
Mr Justice Hilliard noted Chail was able to make preparations, travel to Windsor and apologise for what he was about to do in his homemade video despite his mental illness.
The judge asked: āWhat factors are you looking for to try to assess the degree to which he is psychotic?ā
Dr Brown said it was ānot uncommon at allā for a psychotic person to maintain a ādegree of functionā.
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He was asked whether Chailās repeated apologies indicated he was aware that what he was doing was wrong.
The expert witness said the defendant was an āextremely polite personā but was āclearly very motivated to do what he didā.
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: āIf 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.ā
The sentencing hearing before Mr Justice Hilliard at the Old Bailey continues.