LONDON — Britain’s former Prince Andrew was arrested Thursday on suspicion of misconduct in public office, marking an unprecedented moment in the country’s modern royal history as police widen investigations connected to the late financier Jeffrey Epstein.
Thames Valley Police said officers had arrested “a man in his sixties from Norfolk on suspicion of misconduct in public office.” The force did not name the suspect, in line with standard U.K. practice, but multiple British media outlets identified the man as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the duke formerly known as Prince Andrew.
The arrest came on Andrew’s 66th birthday and follows years of scrutiny over his relationship with Epstein, a convicted U.S. sex offender who died in a New York jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges.
Television footage and photographs published by U.K. outlets showed a convoy of unmarked vehicles arriving early Thursday at the Sandringham estate in eastern England, where Andrew has been living since being stripped of his royal titles last year. He was also forced to vacate his former residence by his brother, King Charles III.
The latest developments stem from newly released U.S. Justice Department files related to Epstein. Among the documents is a November 2010 email seen by AFP in which Andrew, then serving as Britain’s special representative for international trade and investment, appeared to share reports on Vietnam, Hong Kong, Shenzhen and Singapore following an official visit to Asia.
According to the reports, Andrew also sent Epstein details of the trip — during which Epstein’s business associates were said to have accompanied him — along with potential investment opportunities months later.
Official guidance cited by the BBC stipulates that trade envoys are bound by a duty of confidentiality regarding sensitive commercial or political information obtained during official visits.
Andrew served as Britain’s trade envoy for a decade beginning in 2001.
The former royal has repeatedly denied wrongdoing in connection with Epstein. He was stripped of his military affiliations and royal patronages after one of Epstein’s accusers alleged she had been trafficked to have sex with him. Andrew has denied the allegation.
King Charles last week issued an unusual public statement saying Buckingham Palace was “ready to support” police in their inquiries and voiced concern over his brother’s conduct.
At least nine U.K. police forces have said they are assessing material that appears to link Andrew to Epstein. Surrey Police said Wednesday it had become aware of a redacted report alleging “human trafficking and sexual assaults on a minor” between 1994 and 1996 in the village of Virginia Water in southeastern England.
“After reviewing our systems using the limited information available to us, we found no evidence of these allegations being reported to Surrey Police,” the force said in a statement, urging anyone with information to come forward. The statement did not name any individuals.
The report was part of a recent tranche of millions of documents released by U.S. authorities as part of the Epstein investigation.
Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown has called for British police to re-examine records of flights linked to Epstein that arrived at U.K. airports over several decades. Writing in the New Statesman magazine, Brown said he had been told privately that earlier investigations “did not properly check vital evidence of flights.”
“I have asked the police to look at this as part of the new inquiry,” Brown wrote, adding that it appeared “the authorities never knew what was happening.”
London’s Metropolitan Police have also launched a separate investigation into the relationship between Britain’s former ambassador to Washington, Peter Mandelson, and Epstein.
The family of Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein’s most prominent accusers, welcomed news of the arrest. In a statement to CBS News, Giuffre’s siblings said: “At last, today, our broken hearts have been lifted at the news that no one is above the law, not even royalty.”
“He was never a prince,” they added. “For survivors everywhere, Virginia did this for you.”
Giuffre died by suicide last year.
