Royal fan mistakenly arrested on Coronation day as Just Stop Oil protester while standing by activists

A Royal fan was arrested by police while waiting on the Mall to watch the King’s Coronation, after being wrongfully mistaken for a Just Stop Oil protester.

Australian architect Alice Chambers, 36, was arrested on the morning of Saturday 6 May and ended up spending 13 hours in police custody in a cell at Wandsworth Police Station. She had been unknowingly standing next to the group of protesters at the time of the arrest and said police arrested her “before they asked a question”.

She told i news that she had been arrested on suspicion of potential to cause a breach of the peace around 9am along with a dozen others, in a moment captured by Sky News cameras. In custody she was searched and had her fingerprints and mugshot taken, the i reported.

At 7pm she was finally interviewed by two officers and it was found she was not a Just Stop Oil protester but a Royal enthusiast, and was eventually released at 10pm the same day. She told i: “I went to get up and two police officers just grabbed me and handcuffed me. I don’t think they said anything, I think they arrested me before they asked a question.

“I feel like once I was in the system they didn’t listen, I tried to explain that I wasn’t part of the group.”

She added: “The [officers] looked at each other and then they asked ‘have you ever heard of Just Stop Oil? I said, ‘Up until today no.’ They said we have no further questions and we’re really sorry you’ve been caught up in this.

“That was the point I started crying and got emotional – that was the first time anyone had been able to listen to my side of the story.” Ms Chambers has made a complaint to the Met.

Tory MP David Davis wrote on Twitter that he felt “really sorry for this woman” as her “day was ruined as a direct outcome of giving police too many powers.”

The MP for Haltemprice and Howden said: “Changes to the law have engendered an attitude that peaceful protest should be viewed with suspicion. We should also review the viability of charges like ‘conspiracy to cause a public nuisance’.

“They appear to require very little evidence and almost amount to pre-crime. This sort of pre-emptive arrest should only be used to prevent violence, or crimes involving very serious harm.”

The Met said: “We are aware that a woman was arrested in relation to a protest on May 6 2023. The arresting officer was from Lincolnshire Police and the complaint has therefore been passed to the relevant force to investigate.

“The Met will assist by providing any relevant information they require.”

Chief Inspector Simon Outen from the Professional Standards Department at Lincolnshire Police said Ms Chambers “was subsequently released with no further action” and the force have “received a complaint” and “are reviewing the incident”.

Ch Insp Outen added: “We are in contact with the complainant to establish the full details of her allegations.”

It comes as the Metropolitan Police faced strong criticism after arresting six protesters of anti-monarchy group, Republic, ahead of the King’s coronation.

The Met later released them without charges with Scotland Yard expressing “regret” over the arrests. In total officers arrested 64 people in London over the coronation weekend.