Police Accuse 2 Men of Trying to Break into Buckingham Palace

Metropolitan Police in London arrested two men on suspicion of burglary, trespass, and criminal damage after one of them scaled a fence to get into Buckingham Palace.

The incident occurred on Monday, but Scotland Yard did not make it public until Saturday, reports CBC News.

The man who scaled the fence was found in one of the palace's state rooms, at around 10 p.m. London time, in an area that remains open to the public during the day. A second man was arrested outside the palace on suspicion of conspiracy to commit burglary.

Both men are out on bond, and a police spokesman said inquiries are continuing, BBC News said.

Buckingham Palace has not issued any comment about the breach. Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip spend the months of August and September at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, not at Buckingham Palace.

The Palace is the most well-known of the Queen's three homes, also serving as the administrative headquarters of the monarchy. The palace's state rooms, where monarchs "receive, reward and entertain their subjects and visiting dignitaries" have been opened for paying visitors during the day for the past 10 years, during August and September when the monarch is away for her summer holiday, the BBC reported.

Profits from the visitors were initially used to pay for restoration work at Windsor Castle, damaged by fire in November 1992. They now go to the Royal Collection Trust Charity, which manages the Royal Collection of art.

There have been several incidents over the years of break-ins at the palace. In 2004, for example, a protester dressed up as Batman — who said he was campaigning for fathers' rights in the United Kingdom's courts — slipped past security and scaled the side of the palace.

And in one of the palace's most famous break-ins, Michael Fagan, a father of four, got into the queen's private chambers in 1982, while she was still in bed.

She spent 10 minutes chatting with Fagan before she raised an alarm when he asked for a cigarette.