A man in the United Kingdom has been charged with a public order offense after allegedly leaving the queue of mourners in London to approach the late Queen Elizabeth’s coffin on Friday, the BBC reported on Sunday.
The 28-year-old man, identified by London’s Metropolitan Police as Muhammad Khan from Tower Hamlets in east London, has been charged under the Public Order Act.
“Muhammad Khan, 28, of Barleycorn Way, Tower Hamlets, was charged on Saturday, September 17, with an offense under Section 4A of the Public Order Act; behavior intending to cause alarm, harassment or distress,” a statement from the Metropolitan Police said.
“He will appear in custody at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Monday, September 19.”
The live-streamed video feed of Westminster Hall had been cut off when the incident occurred at around 10:00 p.m. BST.
Khan is now the second person to be charged with committing an offense while in the queue of mourners.
On Wednesday, a 19-year-old man identified as Adio Adeshine, was charged after allegedly exposing himself and pushing into mourners as they waited in line at Victoria Tower Gardens, the BBC reported.
Adeshine was charged with two counts of sexual abuse and two counts of breaching sexual harm prevention order. The man will appear at Southwark Crown Court on October 14.
The British government urged people not to travel to join the queue to file past the coffin of Queen Elizabeth as the huge demand means people are having to stand in line for at least 24 hours to reach her lying-in-state, Reuters reported on Saturday.
Tens of thousands of people have already filed past the coffin in a steady, solemn stream, queuing for hours through the dark and cold to pay their respects to Britain’s longest-reigning monarch - a testimony to the affection in which she was held.
The death of the queen on September 8 at her summer estate in the Scottish highlands has sparked an outpouring of emotion across the country and 10 days of highly choreographed events.
Having laid at rest in the Scottish capital for 24 hours the coffin was flown south to London, where tens of thousands of people crowded on to a normally busy road in driving rain to observe the flag-draped casket being driven to Buckingham Palace.
