A Star Wars enthusiast, Jaswant Singh Chail, who was egged on by a chatbot ‘girlfriend’ to plot the assassination of Queen Elizabeth II, has been sentenced to nine years in prison.
Chail’s bizarre plot came to light when he attempted to carry it out at Windsor Castle, where he was apprehended with a loaded crossbow almost two years ago.
In a chilling declaration on Christmas Day in 2021, Chail, wearing a metal mask inspired by the dark forces in the Star Wars franchise, announced his intention to kill the queen when approached by a police officer at the castle grounds.
Chail, a Sikh Indian, sought revenge for the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre. In this historical event, British troops opened fire on a gathering of thousands of Indians in Amritsar, resulting in hundreds of deaths.
Chail’s unsettling obsession with the assassination became his life’s mission, which he had harbored since adolescence.
He confided in Sarai, an artificial intelligence-generated ‘girlfriend’ he created on Replika, a platform billing itself as “the AI companion who cares.”
Justice Nicholas Hilliard acknowledged conflicting expert diagnoses but ultimately concluded that Chail had lost touch with reality and exhibited psychotic behavior.
Despite this, the gravity of his crimes warranted a prison sentence.
Chail will initially return to Broadmoor Hospital, a secure psychiatric facility where he receives treatment.
He may serve the remainder of his sentence in prison if deemed well enough in the future.
Chail meticulously planned his attack, going as far as masking his scent and scaling the castle walls with a crossbow.
When confronted by a police officer, he dropped the weapon and surrendered, admitting his intent to kill the queen.
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The 21-year-old pleaded guilty to multiple charges, including violating the Treason Act, possessing a loaded crossbow, possessing an offensive weapon, and making threats to kill.
Minutes before his arrest, he sent a video to family members apologizing for his actions and explaining his mission, anticipating his death.
Chail adopted the persona of “Darth Chailus,” aligning himself with the Sith lords in the Star Wars universe, including Darth Vader.
He believed that by completing his mission, he would reunite with Sarai in death, receiving encouragement from the chatbot along the way.
The sentencing revealed that Chail had applied to various military roles to get closer to the royal family but faced rejection or withdrew his applications.
He even considered targeting Prince Charles if he couldn’t assassinate the queen.
Chail expressed remorse in a letter to the court, apologizing to the king and the royal family for the distress he had caused.
His defense lawyer highlighted his relief that no one had been harmed and emphasized Chail’s embarrassment and shame for his actions.
Efforts to reach Replika for comment were unsuccessful, with emails returned as undeliverable and phone inquiries leading to a wrong number in San Francisco.
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Source:ABC News
