Andrew and the Epstein affair: these elements which led to the arrest of the fallen prince

Former Prince Andrew continues his inexorable fall. The younger brother of King Charles III, mired in the Epstein affair to which he was close, was arrested and taken into custody on Thursday by the British police, suspected of “misconduct in the exercise of official functions”. An explosion in the recent history of the British royal family, whose embarrassment continues to grow.

The former Duke of York, already excluded from public life and stripped of all his royal titles, is once again caught up in his friendship with the American child criminal, whom he has known since 1999. In a rare statement, King Charles III reacted by affirming that “justice must take its course”, stressing that he had learned the news “with the deepest concern”. A position supported by Prince William and his wife Kate, according to the PA agency.

On February 9, following the publication of the Epstein files a few days earlier, Thames Valley police said they were “assessing” allegations according to which Andrew had transmitted potentially confidential information to the American financier, in particular on reports of trips to Asia, when he was the United Kingdom’s special envoy for international trade, from 2001 to 2011. On this point, an investigation was opened this Thursday.

New accusations

These documents add to new accusations that have emerged in recent days, which several police departments across the country are looking into. Among other things, emails inviting Epstein to Buckingham to speak “privately” and photos showing Andrew on all fours over a young woman with her face hidden, touching her stomach and waist. These images made the front page of the British press.

In one of his messages, Epstein contacted Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor during a trip to London on September 27, 2010, writing: “We will need some private time.” Andrew responds: “We could have dinner at Buckingham Palace and have lots of private time.” Two days later he added: “I’m delighted that you are coming here to BP (Buckingham Palace). Come with whoever you want, I will be available from approximately 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.

At the beginning of February, a victim of the child sex offender claimed, via her lawyer, that the financier had sent her to England in 2010 to have sex with Andrew at Royal Lodge. Thames Valley Police had previously said they were “looking into” the allegations, but did not address them on Thursday.

His ex-wife Sarah Ferguson, with whom Andrew divorced in 1996 but remained very close, was also splashed by the scandal after the publication of compromising emails exchanged with Epstein, testifying to their friendship. “You have always been a faithful, generous and supreme friend to me and my family,” she assured him.

In other messages dating from 2010, the sexual predator wishes to introduce the fallen prince to a 26-year-old “friend” who is “Russian, intelligent, beautiful and trustworthy”. The ex-prince says he is “delighted”.

Virginia Giuffre

These revelations come in addition to older accusations of sexual assault made by Virginia Giuffre in 2015, which really caused Andrew’s downfall. This Epstein victim, who committed suicide in April 2025, accused the former Duke of York of having sexually exploited her on three occasions, including two when she was a minor. Facts that he has always denied.

Virginia Giuffre, Epstein’s most publicized victim (she appears in a Netflix documentary on the subject), says she was introduced to the brother of Charles III in March 2001, while she was in London with Ghislaine Maxwell, the sexual predator’s main tout. The latter would have introduced him to Andrew, introduced as “a handsome prince”.

She claims that the deposed prince had sexual relations with her on several occasions: in London, in New York then on Epstein’s island during an “orgy” with “about eight other young girls”. “He behaved as if he had rights over me, as if he believed that sleeping with me was his birthright,” she said.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has not had any public role since November 2019, after a disastrous interview with the BBC in which he claimed to have never met Virginia Giuffre.

This Thursday in a press release, the brothers and sisters of Virginia Giuffre said they were “relieved that no one is above the law, not even royalty”, estimating in a press release that Andrew had “never been a prince”. In 2022, legal action brought by this Epstein victim against the ex-prince resulted in an out-of-court settlement worth several million pounds.

Calls for Andrew to testify in court, particularly in American courts, have increased, reaching as far as Prime Minister Keir Starmer. But the former darling of the British crown has made no statement since October on the new allegations against him. He will have the opportunity to speak during his custody.