Samurai sword-wielding man arrested outside Parliament ‘wanted to meet Boris Johnson’
A man who was arrested outside Parliament after arriving at the front gate wearing armour and wielding samurai swords has told a court he ‘want to meet Boris Johnson’.
Lewis Allington was arrested following the incident outside Parliament on Tuesday afternoon, which led to the Carriage Gates entrance being temporarily closed.
The 34-year-old, from March, Cambridgeshire, appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Thursday charged with two counts of possession of bladed articles.
Malachy Pakenham, prosecuting, told the court the defendant travelled to London from Cambridgeshire, put on body armour, and attended Parliament ‘with two samurai swords, asking to see Boris Johnson’.
Allington’s defence lawyer Norman Cho told District Judge Briony Clarke that Allington had ‘no intention of harming someone with weapons’.
The pavement outside the entrance to the London landmark was blocked off from around 2pm on Wednesday, after police received reports of a person with knives.
People within Parliament were told they were unable to use the Carriage Gates exit, while those outside were ushered across the street to Parliament Square.
A 34-year-old man was apprehended outside the Houses of Parliament (Picture: PA)
District Judge Clarke sent the case to Southwark Crown Court for a plea and trial preparation hearing on December 12.
She told Allington, who was dressed in a red sweatshirt and green trousers, that he would be granted bail on condition that he remains at a Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Trust facility, following a recent mental health assessment in Hammersmith.
Allington is not to enter London and the area within the M25, she added.
Before leaving the dock, Allington enquired about the swords and armour, to which the judge replied: ‘Nothing is being destroyed at the moment.’
It is understood that nobody was injured in the incident.
A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police ssaid following the incident yesterday: ‘Police were called at 2.01pm to reports of a man in possession of knives outside Parliament, SW1.
‘Officers attended and a 34-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of possession of an offensive weapon in a public place. No injuries have been reported.’
A UK Parliament spokesperson said at the time: ‘We are aware of an incident outside Carriage Gates.
‘Parliamentary Security and the Metropolitan Police are present and managing the situation. For further information please contact the Metropolitan Police.’
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