Man arrested for attempted theft of Magna Carta

A man was arrested on Friday after he tried to steal an original copy of the Magna Carta, the UK's oldest charter of civil rights signed in 1215, from Salisbury Cathedral, the police said.

The Wiltshire Police said a 45-year-old man tried to smash a reinforced glass box containing one of four original copies of the Magna Carta, which is considered to be one of the UK's most valuable and important documents, Efe news reported.

"Alarms were activated at Salisbury Cathedral after an attempt was made to smash the glass box surrounding the Magna Carta," a police statement said.

"A man matching the description given by witnesses was arrested on suspicion of attempted theft, possession of an offensive weapon and criminal damage and has been taken to Melksham custody for questioning where he remains," the statement said.

The document was not damaged in the attempted robbery and nobody was injured.

The Magna Carta Libertatum, medieval Latin for the Great Charter of Liberties and more commonly known as Magna Carta, is a charter of civil liberties agreed by King John of England on June 15, 1215.

The Charter is considered to be one of the most important legal documents in the world and the foundation for individual rights and modern constitutional law, whose principles also underlie much of the Constitution of the US.

--IANS

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