A man in an 'unstable state of mind' has been arrested by police after ramming through a security gate at the Vatican at high speed.
The 40-year-old managed to reach a central courtyard of the Apostolic Palace on Thursday night before he was arrested by Vatican police, according to a statement from the jurisdiction’s press office.
At about 8pm on Thursday the man tried to enter via car at St Ann’s Gate but was turned away by the Swiss Guard, the military unit responsible for protecting the Pope and Apostolic Palace. The Santa Anna gate at the Vatican was breached by a man with apparent psychiatric problems. Picture: AP Photo/Andrew MedichiniThe car’s high speed managed to breach the first security gate and a second checkpoint near the back of St Peter’s Basilica.
A Vatican police officer fired a shot at the car’s front tyres but it failed to deter the man, who continued to speed ahead into the San Damaso Courtyard.Vatican gendarmes fired a shot at the speeding car's front tires after it rushed the gate. Picture: AP Photo/Andrew Medichini The statement said the driver was in a “serious state of psychophysical alteration” upon leaving the car.It is unclear if Pope Francis was near the incident at the time, as he lives on the other side of the city-state at the Santa Marta hotel.Most of Vatican City is closed off to the public, with permission needed to enter many buildings in the enclave.It is guarded 24 hours a day by the Swiss Guard and a specialised section of the Italian police force.
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