Britain’s royal family was thrust into fresh turmoil Thursday after former prince Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested and held for hours by police in an unprecedented move against a senior royal in modern British history.
Prince Andrew, Duke of York, who turned 66 on Thursday, was detained early in the morning at his home on the eastern Sandringham estate in Norfolk. Thames Valley Police said a man in his sixties from Norfolk was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office. In line with common UK practice, the force did not initially name the suspect.
Police swooped on Andrew’s residence around 8:00 am (0800 GMT). He was photographed later leaving a police station near his home, slumped in the back seat of a car, roughly 11 hours after his arrest. Late Thursday evening, Thames Valley Police confirmed that “the arrested man has now been released under investigation.”
Law “Must Take Its Course”
King Charles III responded swiftly, issuing a rare personally signed statement pledging full cooperation with authorities.
“Let me state clearly: the law must take its course,” the king said, as he continued with scheduled public engagements, including opening London Fashion Week, in an apparent bid to project stability.
Andrew was stripped of his military titles and royal patronages last year and asked to vacate his long-time residence at Royal Lodge in Windsor, though he remains eighth in line to the throne.
Epstein Links Under Scrutiny
The arrest follows fresh revelations about Andrew’s ties to late US financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Newly surfaced emails reportedly show Andrew sharing potentially confidential documents with Epstein in 2010, during his tenure as a UK trade envoy.
Epstein was convicted in the United States in 2008 for procuring a child for prostitution and later died in custody in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges.
The controversy intensified after Virginia Giuffre alleged that she had been trafficked to Andrew as a teenager. Andrew has consistently denied wrongdoing. In 2022, he settled a US civil lawsuit brought by Giuffre without admitting liability.
Giuffre’s family welcomed news of the arrest, stating that their “broken hearts have been lifted” and asserting that Andrew was “never a prince.”
A “Moment of Crisis” for the Monarchy
Royal commentators described the arrest as a historic and destabilizing moment.
“It’s a hugely significant moment for the British monarchy,” royal expert Ed Owens told AFP. “We are witnessing a monarchy, I think, shaken by recent events.”
Katie Nicholl, speaking to Sky News, called it potentially the greatest crisis since the 1936 abdication of Edward VIII.
Police confirmed that while searches at the Sandringham estate in Norfolk had concluded, a property in Berkshire — believed to be Royal Lodge — was still under investigation.
Misconduct in public office carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, according to the Crown Prosecution Service. At least nine UK police forces are reviewing material linked to the broader Epstein investigation, following the US Justice Department’s release of millions of related files.
As events continue to unfold, the arrest marks an extraordinary chapter in the modern history of Britain’s monarchy, raising profound questions about accountability at the highest levels of public life.
