Sandringham (United Kingdom) (AFP) – UK police on Friday said they were “contacting” ex-prince Andrew’s protection officers for information, as his sensational arrest tipped the British monarchy into a crisis unprecedented in its modern era. London’s Metropolitan police force said it was seeking information from officers “close” to Andrew, a day after he was arrested by another police force in a separate probe linked to his ties with late US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The Met, which has previously investigated but never arrested Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, said it was seeking “anything” officers “saw or heard during that period of service that may be relevant to our ongoing reviews.” It was also separately working with US authorities to “assess” allegations that multiple flights linked to Epstein facilitating the trafficking of girls and women flew in and out of London airports. At least nine British police forces have confirmed they are looking into claims — many related to Andrew — stemming from the Epstein files released by the US government last month.
Meanwhile, Mountbatten-Windsor — who was marking his 66th birthday when arrested — was nowhere to be seen on Friday, hunkering down at his residence in King Charles III’s sprawling Sandringham Estate in Norfolk, eastern England.
Thames Valley Police, who had arrested the ex-prince, were searching his former home in Windsor, west of London. They were expected to continue their search over the weekend. Footage aired Friday showed officers at Andrew’s former Royal Lodge home in Windsor, with black unmarked vans believed to be police vehicles on site. Police concluded a raid of his current home in Sandringham late Thursday, as the former duke was “released under investigation” after nearly 11 hours in custody. Almost all Britain’s newspapers carried on their front pages a photograph of the disgraced royal, looking haggard and wild-eyed as he left a Norfolk police station in a vehicle.
King Charles III issued a rare, personally signed statement Thursday insisting “the law must take its course” and sought to project a business-as-usual air, carrying out public duties including opening London Fashion Week. But royal commentators were in no doubt the first arrest of a senior royal in centuries signalled a profound crisis. “It’s a hugely significant moment for the British monarchy,” royal expert Ed Owens told AFP, noting much remained unclear including whether Andrew would face criminal charges. “It’s the unknown elements in this particular instance that I think pose so much concern and arguably a threat to the monarchy.”
Once a Falklands War hero and reportedly the late Queen Elizabeth II’s favourite son, Mountbatten-Windsor is now deeply unpopular with Britons. “I’m really pleased that nobody’s above the law,” said Jo Mortimer, 64, who lives in the Norfolk town of Aylsham where the former prince, more used to a life of luxury, was held in custody on Thursday. Fellow local Jacob Twomey, 27, said he still “liked” the royals and thought the ex-prince was just “one bad apple.” A YouGov poll conducted after Mountbatten-Windsor’s arrest showed 82 percent believed he should be removed from the line of succession. He remains eighth in line to the throne. “Andrew must be removed …don’t argue why it is difficult. Just do it,” veteran royal expert Robert Jobson wrote in The Sun. Thursday’s dramatic events sent shockwaves around the world, with US President Donald Trump calling it “very sad.”
Andrew’s arrest follows new revelations that the ex-prince appeared to have sent Epstein potentially confidential documents while serving as a UK trade envoy between 2001 and 2011. In a November 2010 email seen by AFP, Mountbatten-Windsor appeared to share with the US financier reports on his visit to several Asian countries, among other communications about investment possibilities. Epstein had been convicted in the United States in 2008 of child prostitution. Official guidance is thought to stipulate that trade envoys have a duty of confidentiality over sensitive commercial or political information related to their official visits. Charles last year stripped his brother of his titles and ordered him to leave his Windsor mansion, although the ex-prince has strongly denied any wrongdoing. That followed one of Epstein’s accusers, Virginia Giuffre, last year recounting in shocking detail in her posthumous memoir claims that she had been trafficked three times to have sex with Mountbatten-Windsor, twice when she was 17. Mountbatten-Windsor settled a US civil lawsuit in 2022 brought by Giuffre while not admitting liability.
© 2024 AFP
