British police said yesterday they were contacting former protection officers who worked for King Charles’ younger brother Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, urging anyone with allegations of sex offences relating to Jeffrey Epstein to come forward.
Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested on Thursday, his 66th birthday, on suspicion of misconduct in public office over allegations he sent confidential government documents to the disgraced financier when he was a trade envoy.
As part of a completely separate inquiry, London’s Metropolitan Police said it was now identifying and contacting former and serving officers who may have worked closely with the royal.
“They have been asked to consider carefully whether anything they saw or heard during that period of service may be relevant to our ongoing reviews and to share any information that could assist us,” the police statement said.
“We continue to urge anyone with new or relevant information to come forward. All allegations will be taken seriously and, as with any matter, any information received will be assessed and investigated where appropriate.”
Mountbatten-Windsor has always denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein, a convicted sex offender whose death in a New York jail in 2019 was ruled a suicide, and said he regretted their friendship.
In 2022, the royal settled a civil lawsuit brought in the US by the late Virginia Giuffre who accused him of sexually abusing her when she was a teenager at properties owned by Epstein or his associates.
British media reports have stated that Giuffre received around $16.2 million from Mountbatten-Windsor. He has denied ever meeting her.
London police had previously looked into allegations of trafficking for sexual exploitation relating to Epstein and decided in 2016 not to launch any criminal investigation. That decision has since been reviewed three times, and as it stands there is no current formal investigation.
Yesterday’s statement said in light of the recent mass release of documents by the US government relating to Epstein, police were also looking into whether London airports were used by him to facilitate human trafficking and sexual exploitation.
“We are assessing this information and are actively seeking further detail from law enforcement partners, including those in the United States,” the statement said.
That echoed statements from three other police forces that are looking into private flight links to Epstein at other airports in Britain.
The latest development comes after Mountbatten-Windsor was released under investigation, having been held by detectives from Thames Valley police for more than 10 hours on suspicion of misconduct in a public office relating to his time as a trade envoy from 2001-2011.
He has not been charged with any offence, but looked haunted in a Reuters photograph after his release, eyes red and slumped in the back of a Range Rover.
l Britain’s government will consider new legislation to remove Mountbatten-Windsor from the line of royal succession once the ongoing police investigation into his ties with Epstein is over, a UK official said yesterday.
Any changes to the line of succession would require consultation and agreement with other countries where King Charles, is head of state, the official – who asked not to be identified – said.
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