The Queen’s guards arrested in new scandal days from the Platinum Jubilee

Just days before the Queen's 70th birthday celebrations, soldiers from the Irish Guards have been arrested on drug trafficking charges, according to a report in The Sun.

The Queen’s guards arrested in new scandal days from the Platinum Jubilee
© Max Mumby/Indigo / Getty Images
The Queen’s guards arrested in new scandal days from the Platinum Jubilee

For several months now, if not years, the whole of the British people have been overexcited at the idea of celebrating the Queen's Platinum Jubilee. Scheduled to take place from 2 to 5 June, England will celebrate 70 years of the Monarch's reign with a major programme of festivities. Between parades, flags, horse races, concerts, and carnivals, these three days are expected to be full of emotion. However, a new scandal has just surfaced that is sure to bother the British Royal Family.

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The Queen's guards involved in a drug affair?

According to information from The Sun on Thursday 26 May, six active members of the famous Irish Guards have been arrested. The 'Red Guards,' whose Colonel-in-Chief is Prince William, were suspected of dealing in cocaine and running a 'loan-sharking operation.'

The troops arrested were to be part of the Trooping the Colour, the traditional military parade that will open the Queen's Jubilee celebrations in the coming days. As reported by The Independent, the Ministry of Defence has said none of those being investigated will participate in the parade.

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Suspects already released

While five of the seven suspects have already been released on bail, it is believed two others are still being held by the Red CapRoyal Military Police. A source at Mons Barracks in Aldershot, Hants, where the 1st Battalion Irish Guards are based, was quoted as saying:

There was no warning. We were told they had been planning the operation for months. It wasn’t just the barracks. They searched the soldiers’ homes off base. It’s all come as a huge shock.

The Ministry of Defence said:

As part of a planned operation, the Royal Military Police arrested six Irish Guards soldiers and a Coldstream Guardsman veteran on suspicion of conspiracy to supply drugs and money lending and laundering offences.

Although scandals are not uncommon in the British Royal Family, this one, linked to a drugs case, is likely to make a lot of noise in the coming days.

This article has been translated from Oh!MyMag FR.

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