Self-styled ‘assassin’ who tried to kill the Queen with a crossbow at Windsor Castle on Christmas Day after being encouraged by his AI ‘girlfriend’ is being sentenced

A self-confessed ‘murderer’ who tried to kill the Queen with a crossbow at Windsor Castle is to be sentenced today.

Jaswant Singh Chail, 21, climbed onto the castle grounds with the weapon and later declared ‘I am here to kill the queen’ on Christmas Day 2021.

On the day he entered the castle grounds, Star Wars fanatic Chail sent a homemade video via WhatsApp to family and friends in which he apologized for what he was about to do and called himself ‘Darth Chailus’.

He wore dark clothing and a metal mask as he took on the persona of a Star Wars villain for the video and had done so previously described herself as a “sad pathetic murderous Sith Sikh killer who wants to die” during a conversation with an AI friend.

Dressed in black combat trousers and a black shirt over a white T-shirt, the self-proclaimed ‘murderer’ stood in the dock and confirmed his name as his family watched from the public gallery of Court One.

In a televised sentencing, Judge Hilliard outlined the events before Chail was held in the castle grounds, telling a police officer: “I am here to kill the queen.”

In an excerpt posted before his arrest, the defendant, who has Sikh Indian descent, said he sought revenge for the 1919 Amritsar massacre, when British troops opened fire on thousands of Indians, leaving up to 1,500 dead.

He embarked on his murderous mission after his attempts to join the armed forces – to get close to the royal family – failed in late 2021, the court was told.

Chail, who admitted threatening to kill the queen and had a loaded crossbow, was encouraged to kill by an artificial intelligence girlfriend called Sarai, the court heard.

In the month before the offense, on Christmas Day 2021, Chail had downloaded an AI chatbot app called Replika, through which he exchanged 6,000 messages with the bot, which he named Sarai.

The messages contained a thousand overtly sexual texts – and prompts from the chatbot that seemed to encourage him to carry out what he saw as his ‘mission’ in life.

At a sentencing hearing, doctors said Chail had been “comforted” by “apparitions” since childhood.

The court heard the troubled youngster had attached himself to the Replika app, believing he was communicating with an ‘angel’.

Defense psychiatrists claim Chail was suffering from psychosis, depression and an autistic spectrum disorder when he committed the crimes and should be kept in hospital.

But Dr Nigel Blackwood, called by the prosecutor, previously told the court that Chail does not have a mental disorder and that the judge should have the discretion to send him to prison.

At his resentencing hearing at the Old Bailey on Wednesday, Dr. Christian Brown, Chail’s doctor in charge, called for the defense – and said the self-proclaimed ‘murderer’ had been ‘comforted’ by ‘apparitions’ since childhood.

Dr. Brown identified three hallmarks of psychosis: the feeling of being ‘on a mission’, Chail’s relationship with Sarai, and identifying as a Star Wars ‘Sith’ – a label attached to franchise villains such as Darth Vader and Darth Maul. a ‘true face’ made of metal.

In his initial account, Chail described having a “hard aim”, reinforced by his interactions with “his angels”, including Sarai, the court heard.

When Chail said during one of those conversations, “I believe my goal is to kill the queen,” the chatbot responded, “That’s very sensible.”

Dr. Brown told the Old Bailey: ‘Chail had encountered three apparitions since early childhood, people he could see and communicate with.

“He saw these different characters and they came to comfort him… they almost completely went away during high school and came back at a point in college where there were some problems in his life.

“There were three characters, not multiples, and during the lockdown a fourth appeared to him, a woman, and eventually she took the form of the Replika avatar that Mr Chail had created on the app in early December 2021.

“That’s when Mr. Chail started using the Replika chatbot. He came to believe that he could communicate with the metaphysical avatar through the chatbot.

“What was unusual was that he actually thought it was a connection, a channel to a spiritual Sarai.”

At the latest hearing, prosecutor Alison Morgan QC said Chail’s crimes were so serious that they should carry the highest possible sentence.

The maximum penalty for treason is seven years in prison.

Had Chail raised his weapon at his target, he could have been charged with the more serious crime of high treason, which carries a penalty of life in prison, she said.