By Tony O’Reilly-
A foolish 22-year-old boy arrested for heckling Prince Andrew as the Queen’s cortege passed along Edinburgh’s Royal Mile has been charged.
The currently unnamed 22-year-old man is accused of a “breach of the peace” – the same offence used to charge a woman who held up an “abolish monarchy” sign during the proclamation of Charles III on Sunday.
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Footage showed the man shouting at Prince Andrew over allegations related to his former friend, American sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, as he walked in the Queen’s funeral cortege as part of the royal family.
All the Queen’s children, including the King, were walking behind her coffin when the man shouted: “Andrew, you’re a sick old man. Cops quickly apprehended the man, and two horrified members of the public could be seen pushing the man as he was apprehended.
Prince Andrew was stripped of his military titles, royal titles and “His Royal Highness” styling in January. As a result, he was the only of the Queen’s children not to be wearing military uniform during the procession.
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The Duke settled civil action brought by Virginia Roberts Guiffe while making no admissions as to liability. She had accused the Duke of sexually abusing her on three occasions when she was 17. He has always denied the allegations.
Ahead of the ceremony on Sunday republican campaigners urged those attending the event to object to Charles being made monarch without “public ascent or mandate”.
The demise of the queen has led to several dissenters of the monarchy seizing their opportunity to be disrespectful and protest against the monarchy.
A woman was charged on Monday after holding an abolish the monarchy sign was charged with the breaching the peace . The same day, a 45-year-old man was arrested, and then de-arrested, by Thames Valley Police in connection to a “disturbance that was caused” at another accession proclamation ceremony in Oxford, South England, after he shouted “who elected him?”
Human Rights groups have criticised the decision of cops to arrest people expressing free speech, but speech that incites hatred and is designed to offend in moments such as a natural mourning cannot be lawful.
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A nearby police officer and two members of the public were filmed dragging the lad to the ground.
The cop is then seen dragging the protester away, before angry mourners shove him and yell at him.
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “A 22-year-old man was arrested and charged in connection with a breach of the peace on the Royal Mile around 2.50pm on Monday.
”He was released on an undertaking to appear at Edinburgh Sheriff Court at a later date and a report will be sent to the Procurator Fiscal.”
Human rights campaign group Liberty said it was “very worrying to see the police enforcing their broad powers in such a heavy-handed and punitive way to clamp down on free speech and expression”.
Barrister and member of the Equality and Human Rights Commission panel of counsel, Adam Wagner, said that “the police should leave well alone
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