Man with knife arrested outside Buckingham Palace

LONDON -- A man with a knife was arrested after he tried to dart through a gate at Buckingham Palace in London on Monday, police said. The palace said Queen Elizabeth II was not in residence.

Breaches of royal security are rare, but just a month ago police arrested two men over a suspected break-in at the palace.

Police said Monday a 44-year-old man was apprehended as he tried to run through security at a palace gate that serves both pedestrians and vehicles.

They searched him and found a knife. They arrested him on suspicion of trespassing on a protected site and possession of an offensive weapon.

The man is currently in custody at a London police station, the force added, stressing that the man was apprehended "immediately."

That was not the case in September's embarrassing breach, when an intruder was discovered prowling around the palace after scaling a fence, and an alleged accomplice was also arrested. That was judged one of the most serious incidents since Michael Fagan managed to sneak into the queen's private chambers in 1982.

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