A SUSPECT accused of throwing shotgun cartridges into Buckingham Palace’s grounds allegedly told pals he “had a plan to get attention”.
Dog breeder David Huber, 59, wanted to be seen by “someone in power” after making the 280-mile journey from his remote Cumbria home to London.
He allegedly carried shotgun cartridges and a knife inside a black backpack, which also contained passports and a self-help book.
Huber told friends he “wanted to get noticed”, it has been claimed.
His sister Beverley, 63, said he sent her a final text message shortly before his arrest telling her he planned to watch the coronation “wiv my mutts”.
She described him as a royalist and added: “He wouldn’t hurt a fly. He knew he would be arrested and get his voice heard.”
He apparently hid his car because he feared he was being followed and instead asked a pal to take him to a railway station after making last-minute arrangements to care for his dogs.
Three police cars arrived at the stone-built property on Wednesday after he underwent a mental health assessment and was deemed fit to be interviewed.
One pal said: “I got the impression he wanted to get noticed for something. He said he needed to get away from here and he needed to get some stuff sorted out.”
The friend took him on a 50-minute drive from his home in Cumbria to Darlington railway station on the east coast mainline.
I got the impression he wanted to get noticed for something
Anonymous friend
He added: “He didn’t drive himself to the station because he didn’t want anyone following his car. He parked it somewhere close by and said: ‘I think I’m being followed.’
“He hadn’t even decided which railway station he was going to and didn’t say where he was getting a train to. He didn’t have a ticket.
“But he definitely said he needed to get things sorted. He said he had a plan to catch someone’s attention, someone in power.
“He felt under threat from somebody or something.
“I didn’t alert anyone because I don’t think he was a threat to anyone, apart from himself. He is not an aggressive man, he is a private, mild-mannered guy.
“I don’t think what he did was addressed towards the Royal family, I think it was just to make sure he made an impact.”
Huber made sure his 30 Hungarian Vizslar dogs – which can sell for up to £5,000 each – were well cared for before he headed to London.
He left food and water for them and they had access to their outdoor enclosure.
Huber owns a state-of-the-art kennels on a smallholding where he breeds and trains around 30 Hungarian Vizsla dogs.
He lives in a stone-built, detached house next to the kennels – which he converted from a barn used by the previous farmer to house sheep and fell ponies in the winter.
Friends described him as a “private, mild-mannered” dad who posted a heartfelt message following the Queen’s death.
In a Facebook post he wrote: “It’s a massive loss to all.”
A month later, he posted a meme writing: “They said I changed a lot. I said a lot changed me.”
Huber was arrested at 7.15pm on Tuesday on suspicion of possessing a knife and ammunition as an officer aimed a Taser at his shoulder.
Metropolitan Police Deputy Assistant Commissioner Ade Adelekan said he initially asked to speak to a soldier.
When officers said it was not possible he began hurling ammunition.
Other witnesses claimed he had previously been heard saying he was “going to kill the King” but cops said they were unaware of those reports.
Mr Adelekan said the suspect was detained within seconds and arrested in five minutes.
Our cheeks moved when we heard the explosion
John Loughrey
He then told cops to handle his rucksack with care which led to a controlled explosion being carried out on the bag.
The contents of the bag proved harmless.
The blast, which could be heard live on TV, happened as cordons were put up in the area just hours before a major military rehearsal of the coronation procession.
Royal superfan John Loughrey, 68, who has camped on the Mall ahead of Saturday’s coronation, said: “Our cheeks moved when we heard the explosions. I thought a bomb had gone off.”
Huber later phoned his local vets from custody to ask them to check on his dogs.
Scotland Yard said they were not treating the incident as terror-related.
Huber’s brother, Simon, 63, of Leeds, West Yorks., said: “It wouldn’t have been a serious threat. He is more of a danger to himself than to anyone else.
“My brother needs help. But if he won’t accept help, what can you do?”
Sources said the King left the palace about an hour earlier after hosting Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
Mr Adelekan said: “We have a protective security plan and one of the concerns is around lone individuals and we have a plan around that.
“We are still very confident of the plan we have in place for policing the coronation.”
He is understood to have been “devoted” to his dogs, several of which could be seen on a hill behind the property on Wednesday.
Huber’s firm boasts on its website: “We breed and train first class Hungarian Vizslas for discerning customers in the UK, Europe, and if required Worldwide.
“Our dogs are of the best quality for both the show ring and as a working companion.”
The website includes several testimonials from customers crediting “Dave” for his gold-standard service and quality of animal, which are sold for around £5,000.
A Pendragon vet was at the property checking on the dogs on Wednesday and told The Sun: “He breeds good pups.
“It’s not a puppy farm, he breeds good pups and trains them to a certain standard before he sells them.
“He is a proper breeder and if it doesn’t work out he will take dogs back.
“He must have felt really cornered for him to leave the dogs.
“But he left everything in good order, he left them with food and water, there wasn’t much for us to do but we will be calling back a couple of times a day to make sure everything is okay.”
In February, Jaswant Singh Chail, then 21, admitted a charge under the Treason Act of trying to harm the late Queen.
He was caught in the grounds of Windsor Castle with a loaded crossbow on Christmas Day 2021, close to the late Queen’s private residence, where she and other members of the royal family were at the time.
