Prince William and his wife, Catherine, Princess of Wales, have been left reeling in the face of an attempted break-in at their Windsor Castle home.
The royal couple currently live at Adelaide Cottage with their three young children on the east side of the castle.
Both the Metropolitan Police and Thames Valley Police have confirmed that a suspect in his 30s gained illegal access to the grounds on June 1st and was arrested just after 1pm.
He was then detained on suspicion of trespass on a protected site and possession of Class A drugs before making bail. An investigation is ongoing.
Royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams told the Metro that the arrest served as a reminder of just how vital security was in keeping members of the royal family safe.
“This just highlights that security is of paramount importance to members of the royal family,” he told the publication.
“As criminals become more intelligent and with the rise of social media, this underlines the importance of [a] security system for royal family members.”
This isn’t the first time intruders have trespassed on Windsor Castle grounds. In October 2024, two masked assailants broke into farm buildings located within the security zone on the property while the Wales family was sleeping soundly nearby.
The intruders ultimately used a stolen vehicle to crash through a security gate as they fled the property.
At the time, police said they believed the trespassers were targeting farm machinery. An arrest was later made.
The Wales family first moved into the royal residence in 2022, with royal sources citing at the time that the relocation was driven by a desire by the Prince and Princess of Wales to give their children “a more rural upbringing away from central London and the hustle and bustle of Kensington Palace,” as per Town & Country.
As of the publication of this story, neither Kensington Palace nor Buckingham Palace has released a formal statement in relation to either security incident.
