British Police Arrest Former Prince Andrew Amid Scrutiny Over Epstein Ties

British Police Arrest Former Prince Andrew, in Stunning Blow to Royal FamilyAndrew Mountbatten-Windsor, a longtime associate of Jeffrey Epstein, is being investigated on suspicion of misconduct in public office.Police officers at an entrance to Wood Farm on the royal family’s Sandringham Estate on Thursday, where Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was living.Credit...Justin Tallis/Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesFeb. 19, 2026, 6:00 p.m. ETAndrew Mountbatten-Windsor, once regarded as a dashing war hero and the favorite son of Queen Elizabeth II, was arrested by the British police on Thursday amid widening scrutiny over his ties to the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.Mr. Mountbatten-Windsor’s arrest, on suspicion of misconduct in public office, was a staggering blow to the British monarchy and the latest chapter in his downfall, coming months after his connections to Mr. Epstein led Buckingham Palace to strip him of his royal titles and evict from his royal residence.The police did not provide any details of the investigation. But the arrest of Mr. Mountbatten-Windsor, the younger brother of King Charles III who was formerly known as Prince Andrew, came after reports suggested that he may have shared confidential information with Mr. Epstein while serving as a British trade envoy, a position he held from 2001 to 2011.The police did not mention the accusations of sexual abuse that have shadowed Mr. Mountbatten-Windsor, 66, or the trafficking allegations that Mr. Epstein was facing when he died by suicide in a Manhattan jail in 2019.In a remarkable written statement addressed directly to the British public, Charles said he had learned of his brother’s arrest “with the deepest concern.”“What now follows is the full, fair and proper process by which this issue is investigated in the appropriate manner and by the appropriate authorities,” Charles wrote. “In this, as I have said before, they have our full and wholehearted support and cooperation.”He concluded his statement with a note of determination. “Meanwhile, my family and I will continue in our duty and service to you all,” Charles wrote. He later attended an event for London Fashion Week and his wife, Queen Camilla, went to a lunchtime orchestral concert in the city.ImageKing Charles III attending a Tolu Coker fashion show during London Fashion Week 2026 on Thursday.Credit...Simbarashe Cha/The New York TimesThe arrest was without precedent in modern British history. The last senior member of the royal family to be arrested in connection with a serious crime was King Charles I, who was executed for treason nearly four centuries ago, on Jan. 30, 1649.The arrest of Mr. Mountbatten-Windsor, who was released after around 11 hours in custody, escalated the crisis confronting the British crown amid deepening revelations of his connections to Mr. Epstein and allegations that he sexually abused a young woman trafficked to him by the American. The former prince has denied that he raped the woman, Virginia Roberts Giuffre.A British anti-monarchy group, Republic, said it had reported evidence of potential misconduct in public office to the Thames Valley Police, the police force west of London that is leading the investigation.Gordon Brown, who was the British prime minister when Mr. Mountbatten-Windsor was a government trade envoy, issued a statement on Thursday saying that he had provided additional information about Mr. Epstein to the Thames Valley Police ahead of Mr. Mountbatten-Windsor’s arrest.The Thames Valley Police, citing national guidelines, did not identify the man they had arrested, but confirmed that they had taken “a man in his sixties from Norfolk” into custody at about 8 a.m. and were carrying out searches at addresses in Berkshire and Norfolk.The police were seen in Norfolk on Thursday morning at the Sandringham Estate, the private, 20,000-acre country retreat of Charles and Camilla, where Mr. Mountbatten-Windsor has been living since he was evicted earlier this year from the Royal Lodge, his residence in Windsor.ImageMembers of the media near Royal Lodge, Andrew’s former home, in Windsor on Thursday.Credit...Jaimi Joy/ReutersThe police later confirmed that the man they had arrested was “released under investigation,” a designation that indicated that the investigation was not over. Photos shared by the BBC showed Mr. Mountbatten-Windsor in the back seat of a car appearing to leave a police station where he had been held. Under British law, the police generally cannot hold suspects for more than 24 hours without charging them. In the British legal system, the investigation could continue with charges filed at a later date. Mr. Mountbatten-Windsor’s representatives did not immediately respond to requests for comment.According to the guidance provided to British prosecutors, misconduct in public office is committed when a public officer “willfully neglects to perform their duty” or “willfully misconducts themselves” in abuse of the public trust.No case has ever tested whether a member of the royal family could be considered a public officer, but Mr. Mountbatten-Windsor, in addition to serving as a government trade envoy, was a helicopter pilot for the Royal Navy during the war with Argentina over the Falkland Islands in 1982.He met Mr. Epstein in the late 1990s through Ghislaine Maxwell, then the financier’s girlfriend and the daughter of the British media magnate Robert Maxwell. Mr. Mountbatten-Windsor told the BBC in 2019 that the friendship was valuable, partly because of the networking opportunities it offered.Ms. Giuffre had accused Mr. Epstein and Ms. Maxwell of recruiting her for sexual abuse under the guise of becoming a professional masseuse.In 2022, Mr. Mountbatten-Windsor paid Ms. Giuffre an undisclosed sum to settle a lawsuit in a New York court that accused him of raping her when she was 17. He did not admit any wrongdoing in the case.Ms. Giuffre died by suicide last year. On Thursday, her family welcomed Mr. Mountbatten-Windsor’s arrest.“At last,” the family said. “Today, our broken hearts have been lifted at the news that no one is above the law, not even royalty.”ImageA widely published photograph showing Andrew, then still a prince, and Virginia Giuffre. Mr. Epstein’s longtime companion, Ghislaine Maxwell, is at the right.Credit...US District Court — Southern District of New YorkThat view was echoed by David Lammy, Britain’s deputy prime minister and justice secretary, who told the BBC that “nobody in this country is above the law” and that the investigation “must happen in the usual way.”The arrest underscored a striking contrast in the official responses to the Epstein files, which have tainted the reputations of powerful figures in business, academia, entertainment and politics. The British authorities have moved aggressively to investigate the possibility of crimes emerging from the documents, while the police in the United States have not.President Trump, discussing the arrest with reporters, said: “I think it’s a shame. I think it’s very sad. I think it’s so bad for the royal family.”In Britain, the police are also investigating whether Peter Mandelson, a longtime British political operative who served as ambassador to the United States, committed misconduct in public office by sharing sensitive government documents with Mr. Epstein. He has denied any criminal wrongdoing.The files also revealed that Sarah Ferguson, Mr. Mountbatten-Windsor’s ex-wife and the onetime Duchess of York, carried on a long and personal correspondence with Mr. Epstein long after he was convicted of soliciting prostitution in 2008.Reporting was contributed by Lizzie Dearden, Isabella Kwai, Amelia Nierenberg and Annie Karni.Megan Specia reports on Britain, Ireland and the Ukraine war for The Times. She is based in London.Michael D. Shear is a senior Times correspondent covering British politics and culture, and diplomacy around the world.Michael Levenson covers breaking news for The Times from New York.A version of this article appears in print on of the New York edition with the headline: Former Prince Is Arrested After Epstein Disclosures. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | SubscribeSKIP