A journalist looks at Friday’s newspaper front pages in London after Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested and held for hours by British police on suspicion of misconduct in public office related to his links to Jeffrey Epstein.
Kin Cheung/AP
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Kin Cheung/AP
LONDON — Police searched the former home of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor again on Friday, a day after he was arrested and held in custody for nearly 11 hours on suspicion of misconduct in public office related to his friendship with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Following one of the most tumultuous days in the modern history of Britain’s royal family, the former Prince Andrew is back at his new residence on the Sandringham estate, King Charles III ‘s private retreat, which is around 115 miles (185 kilometers) north of London.
Police have concluded their search at Wood Farm, where Mountbatten-Windsor is living while waiting for his new home nearby, Marsh Farm, to be ready.
They are still searching Royal Lodge, his 30-room former home in the parkland near Windsor Castle, just west of the capital, where the king’s younger brother had lived for decades until his eviction earlier this month. Unmarked vans, believed to be police vehicles, have been entering the grounds throughout Friday morning.
Mountbatten-Windsor, who was pictured slouched in the back of his chauffeur-driven car following his release Thursday evening from a police station near Sandringham, remains under investigation, which means he has neither been charged nor exonerated by Thames Valley Police, the force responsible for areas west of London.
Arrest was years in the making
His arrest follows years of allegations over his links with Epstein, who took his own life in a New York jail in 2019. The accusation at the heart of his arrest is that Mountbatten-Windsor — who was known as Prince Andrew until October when his brother stripped him of his titles and honors and banished him from Royal Lodge — shared confidential trade information with the disgraced financier when he was a trade envoy for the U.K.
Specifically, emails released last month by the U.S. Department of Justice appeared to show Mountbatten-Windsor sharing reports of official visits to Hong Kong, Vietnam and Singapore.
One, dated November 2010, appeared to be forwarded by Andrew five minutes after he had received it. Another a few weeks later appeared to show him sending Epstein a confidential brief on investment opportunities in the reconstruction of Helmand Province, Afghanistan.
Thames Valley Police has previously said it was also reviewing allegations that a woman was trafficked to the U.K. by Epstein to have a sexual encounter with Andrew. Thursday’s arrest had nothing to do with that.
Other police forces are also conducting their own investigations into Epstein’s links to the U.K., including the assessment of flight logs at airports, large and small.
Mountbatten-Windsor has consistently denied any wrongdoing in his association with Epstein but has not commented on the most recent allegations that have emerged with the release of the so-called Epstein files.
Arrest was sudden, investigation will take time
Police swept into the grounds of Mountbatten-Windsor’s home to arrest him at 8 a.m. Thursday — his 66th birthday — before taking him to Aylsham police station for questioning.
It’s not known what he told them. He may have said nothing, or “no comment,” as is his right.
Experts said that misconduct in a public office is notoriously difficult to prove.
“Firstly, it must be determined if Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was in a role within government that constitutes the title of public officer,” said Sean Caulfield, a criminal defense lawyer at Hodge Jones & Allen. “There is no standard definition to clearly draw on.”
