The Duke of Sussex’s staff “body-blocked” an alleged stalker who got within feet of him on two occasions during his recent trip to the UK, it has been claimed.
The woman’s approaches were made while Prince Harry was attending the annual WellChild Awards in London on September 8, and two days later during a visit to Imperial College London, where he saw work being carried out at the Royal British Legion Centre for Blast Injury Studies, according to The Daily Telegraph.
During the first alleged incident, the woman entered a “secure zone” at the Royal Lancaster Hotel in central London when the duke, who has been patron of WellChild for 17 years, attended the 20th Anniversary WellChild Awards.
Security sources told the newspaper that she was seen again, also within feet of the prince, while he was visiting the Centre for Blast Injury Studies, the laboratories of which he opened in 2013.
A member of Harry’s private staff recognised the woman and “body-blocked” her from getting too close. The employee recognised the woman because her name is on a list of fixated individuals compiled by a private intelligence firm and handed to Harry’s personal protection team.
It is alleged that the woman has followed the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to other countries, including Nigeria, which the couple visited last year.
Scotland Yard declined to comment on the two alleged incidents, saying that it did not discuss security arrangements. The Times has contacted the Metropolitan Police for comment.
Harry’s visit in September was his first return to Britain since he lost a long-running legal battle with the Home Office in which he tried and failed to have his police security reinstated.
He no longer has access to police convoys to usher him through traffic. He has urged Sir Keir Starmer to order a review of the process.
In May, the Court of Appeal in London rejected Harry’s attempt to restore the protection, saying that a government committee was justified in deciding that security should be assessed case by case whenever he visits the UK.
The duke has blamed the palace, alleging that the decision to withdraw his security was made at the direction of royal officials, who sit on the committee alongside police and government representatives.
He alleged to the BBC that they were “knowingly putting me and my family in harm’s way,” hoping that the sense of threat “would force us to come back”.
Harry’s rare trip to the UK last month included a string of charity and other engagements. He began his visit by commemorating the third anniversary of the death of his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, by laying flowers at her resting place at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle.