London, November 11 (Adnkronos) – Buckinghamshire, spring 2022. While driving on the M40, the motorway that crosses England to connect London to Oxford and Birmingham, three royal palace employees serving Charles and Camilla decided to stop for a moment at a service area near the village of Beaconsfield. They left the car unlocked, two people went to drink coffee and one person went to smoke. They returned and a box, which contained the future queen’s jewels and which they were carrying, mysteriously disappeared. It seems like the opening words of the final James Bond episode, but it really happened. Only, nothing was known about it until the publication this month of ‘The Windsor Legacy’, by British journalist Robert Jobson.
The three men were transporting the personal belongings of the future ruler, who was preparing to make a three-day official visit to Canada. In the car – writes the author – a box was labeled “Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cornwall” and this was enough to attract the attention of a group of thugs passing by. An opportunity too good to miss. When the three courtiers returned minutes later, the box was gone, along with Camilla’s historic jewellery. Royal security immediately alerted MI5 and the incident was kept secret. British intelligence officers were assigned to examine surveillance camera footage and others were immediately sent to the scene.
The investigation was carried out with extraordinary efficiency: within hours, the jewels were found and returned to Carlo and Camilla. What’s even more impressive: for three years, the case remained secret, a ‘feat’ that amazed even the palace. Robert Jobson clarified that the Prince of Wales and his wife were indeed informed of the theft, but chose to keep the incident private. Not even a complaint was filed. In the spring of 2022, nothing can ruin Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations.
