Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor investigation widens as detectives assess sexual allegations linked to Epstein
Detectives investigating Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor for potential misconduct in public office are assessing claims of sexual offenses.
A woman allegedly sent by pedophile Jeffrey Epstein to the former prince’s Royal Lodge home is at the center of the investigation.
Thames Valley officers are said to be examining “a number of aspects of alleged misconduct” including sexual wrongdoing and corruption. They are understood to be working through material seized during a week-long fingertip search at Mountbatten-Windsor’s former Royal Lodge mansion in Windsor.
A woman, who is not British and was in her 20s at the time, is at the heart of the investigation. Her lawyer, Brad Edwards, has previously said: “We’re talking about at least one woman who was sent by Jeffrey Epstein over to Prince Andrew.”
Mr Edwards added that after spending the night with the former prince, the woman says she was given tea and a tour of Buckingham Palace.
Mountbatten-Windsor was released under investigation in February after he was arrested on his 66th birthday and questioned on suspicion of misconduct in a public office. The original allegations were that he provided commercially valuable information to pedophile friend Jeffrey Epstein while serving as the UK’s special trade envoy from 2001 to 2011.
Officers, including those specializing in sexual offenses, are following several lines of inquiry following the publication of the Epstein files.
Assistant Chief Constable Oliver Wright said on Thursday: “Misconduct in public office is a crime that can take different forms, making this a complex investigation. Our team of very experienced detectives is working meticulously through a significant amount of information from the public and other sources.
“We are committed to conducting a thorough investigation into all reasonable lines of inquiry. We encourage anyone with information to get in touch with us through non-urgent channels, such as the Thames Valley Police online portal.”
The force is supporting national policing in contacting Epstein victims and survivors. It said: “We hope that anyone with relevant information will come forward whenever they are ready to engage with us.”
A group hosted by the National Police Chiefs’ Council is coordinating UK policing efforts to examine allegations contained in the Epstein files.
Along with the misconduct probe, detectives are assessing reports that a woman was taken to an address in Windsor in 2010 for sexual purposes. They have told her lawyer that should she wish to report this to police, “it will be taken seriously and handled with care, sensitivity, and respect for her privacy and her right to anonymity.”
The force added: “We recognize how difficult it can be to speak about experiences of this nature. Any contact with police will be led by her wishes, when and if she feels ready and able to do so.”
In 2014, Virginia Giuffre became the first woman to publicly accuse Mountbatten-Windsor of similar allegations. She claimed that at age 17 she was trafficked by Epstein and his girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell and forced to have sex with Mountbatten-Windsor – which he denies. She took her own life last year.
As Mountbatten-Windsor was released under investigation, police and prosecution lawyers have no time limits before deciding whether to charge him. The investigation is expected to take many months.
Only redacted copies of documents relating to Epstein have been published by the US Department of Justice. It told UK police it will not hand over the original papers without a formal request. It is understood that none have been disclosed so far.
According to emails released in the files, the former prince passed on reports to the disgraced financier of visits to Singapore, Hong Kong, and Vietnam and confidential details of investment opportunities.
Trade envoys have a duty of confidentiality over sensitive, commercial, or political information about their official visits under official rules.
It is not clear if Mountbatten-Windsor’s job made him a public official due to the ambiguity of the law relating to the charge. He has consistently and strenuously denied any wrongdoing. Misconduct in public office involves “serious willful abuse or neglect” of the power or responsibilities of the public office held.
Abuse of position can take many forms, including “for a sexual purpose” and the offense carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
In 2016 the Met Police decided not to proceed after Ms. Giuffre filed court papers in Florida alleging she was trafficked by Epstein and Maxwell to have sex with Mountbatten-Windsor while a minor.
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