Carer left in tears as King's Guard breaks protocol to pose with man with Down's syndrome

A CARER was left in tears after a King’s Guard broke protocol to step up to pose for a photo with a man with Down’s syndrome.

Mike van Erp, 50, and the man stood a few feet from the guard hoping for a snap outside Buckingham Palace.

Despite being famed for keeping still and silent, the soldier moves towards the pair, helping them capture the perfect pic.

After thanking him, Mike then told him: “What a nice man. What a cool thing to do.”

He said of his colleague: “I’ve worked for his family and him for a decade now and this left me with tears in my eyes for a few evenings.”

The King’s Guard has earned something of a bad reputation lately because of online footage showing them shouting at people who get too close to them or their horses.

In May, a woman lashed out at a King’s Guard for “pushing” her, leaving many people divided.

The incident, which went viral on TikTok, took place at the Horse Guards Parade as the guard was carrying out his duties.

The guards, who are sworn to protect the official entrance to St. James’s Palace and Buckingham Palace, are known to not move out of the way for anyone.

Footage shows a woman holding a can of pringles standing very close to one of the mounted guards while other bystanders stand further back.

As he salutes his fellow guard, the King’s guard on foot can be seen turning to the woman and asking her to step back.

Although she moves back slightly, the woman then moves back into the guard’s path as he makes his return to his position.

Shouting “make way” loudly as he walks, he sticks out an arm to move her out of the way.

And the fuming woman reacts by lashing out at him with the can of pringles.

The woman can then be heard asking the crowd “did you see that?”

One man can be heard on camera replying: “He asked you to move and you didn’t do it.”