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Daily Record
Daily Record
Entertainment
John James & Daniel Morrow

The Queen rocked by 'security breach' after imposter dressed as priest spends night at nearby barracks

A Royal stalker posing as a priest was escorted from a barracks just metres away from Windsor Castle, it has been reported.

The Sun reports that the man was allowed to enter Victoria Barracks after he claimed to be a priest and a friend of the padre to the Coldstream Guards to stay at the base.

It has been claimed that the imposter was allowed access without showing any identification or credentials.

He also spent the night drinking with senior officers before he was offered a bed for the evening, the Daily Star reports.

The alarm was raised the following morning.

After the imposter was exposed as a “fantasist”, police were called to the barracks and he was escorted from the premises.

A Thames Valley Police spokesman said: “We received a report of an intruder at Victoria Barracks in Sheet Street, Windsor, at 9.20am on Wednesday.

“Officers attended and removed the intruder from the barracks. No further action was required.”

Victoria Barracks is just 250 metres from Windsor Castle however the Queen was not present at the time of the breach.

The barracks is just metres away from Windsor Castle (Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images)

Speaking to the Sun, a source close to the Royal Family expressed how shocking the breach was and detailed the antics of the imposter during his stay.

They said: "This is just an extraordinary breach of security.

“The guy turned up at the gate in the evening and said his name was Father Cruise and claimed to be a friend of the battalion's Padre Rev Matt Coles.

“He was invited in and offered something to eat in the Officer’s Mess.

“Within a couple of hours, he was drinking with the officers in the bar and telling them stories of how he had served in Iraq.

“He was telling lots of tall stories and the lads were enjoying his banter and having a few drinks.

“It was only later in the evening when he started talking about how he had worked as an ejector-seat test pilot and had donated some of his organs that the chaps started to get suspicious.

“But in any event he was allowed a bed for the night.

“Checks were made in the morning and it was apparent this guy wasn’t a bona fide priest and the police were called.”

In response to the incident, the Ministry of Defence told the Daily Star the incident would be investigated 'as a matter of priority.'

An Army spokesperson said: “The Army takes this breach of security extremely seriously and it will be thoroughly investigated as a matter of priority.

“This incident is now part of an ongoing investigation and it would therefore be inappropriate to comment further at this time.”

A spokesman for the Royal Family informed the Daily Star they would not be commenting on the story.

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