Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor takes legal action against UK police over Epstein arrest

Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP

King Charles’ younger brother Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has launched legal action against police in England over his arrest earlier this year on suspicion of misconduct in public office following revelations from the Epstein files in the United States.

Mountbatten-Windsor, 66, has asked for a judge to determine if Thames Valley Police’s actions against him earlier this year were lawful. The development was first reported by Britain’s The Telegraph newspaper on Sunday.

He has lodged a judicial review in relation to the search warrants that were executed at his home at the Sandringham Estate and his former home at Royal Lodge in Windsor.

A court hearing will be held on Thursday, British media reported Monday.

Thames Valley Police confirmed to CNN on Monday that it was “engaged in legal proceedings in relation to warrants previously obtained from the Central Criminal Court” and would not comment further with legal proceedings ongoing.

CNN has also reached out to the UK Judicial Office for comment.

The former Duke of York became the first senior royal in centuries to be arrested in February, the latest extraordinary development in a yearslong scandal over his ties to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, which obliterated his reputation and has thrown the royal family into crisis.

He was detained by police on his 66th birthday at his new home on his brother’s Sandringham estate in Norfolk, eastern England, on February 19. He was taken to Aylsham police station where he was questioned for almost 12 hours before being released under investigation. No charges were filed; police have said its investigation is still ongoing.

Mountbatten-Windsor’s arrest came after the force previously said it was assessing whether the former prince had shared confidential information with Epstein during his decade as a UK trade envoy.

Mountbatten-Windsor has vehemently denied any and all wrongdoing in his dealings with Epstein, and has denied any personal gain from his role as a trade envoy, according to British media reports.

Jeff Spicer/Pool/Reuters

Why was Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor arrested? Here’s what to know about ‘misconduct in public office’

He stepped down from official royal duties in 2019 following a calamitous interview with the BBC over his friendship with Epstein. But headlines related to the late financier continued to plague the disgraced royal. In 2025, King Charles stripped his younger brother of his title as prince, following public outcry after the release of a posthumous memoir by Virginia Giuffre, a prominent accuser of Epstein who alleged that Mountbatten-Windsor had sexually assaulted her as a teenager.

Giuffre – who the prince claims never to have met – died by suicide in April 2025 at the age of 41. In addition to denying all allegations against him, Mountbatten-Windsor has also previously insisted he never witnessed or suspected any of the behavior of which Epstein is accused.

Kirsty Wigglesworth/美联社

查尔斯国王的弟弟安德鲁·蒙巴顿-温莎已对英国警方提起诉讼，指控其在今年早些时候因涉嫌在公职中行为不当而被捕，此前美国爱泼斯坦档案中披露了相关内容。

现年66岁的蒙巴顿-温莎已请求法官裁定泰晤士河谷警方今年早些时候对其采取的行动是否合法。英国《每日电讯报》周日率先报道了这一消息。

他已就对其位于桑德灵厄姆庄园的住所和位于温莎皇家别墅的前住所执行的搜查令提起司法复核。

据英国媒体周一报道，法庭听证会将于周四举行。

泰晤士河谷警方周一向 CNN 证实，他们“正在就此前从中央刑事法院获得的搜查令进行法律诉讼”，并且在法律诉讼进行期间不会对此事发表进一步评论。

CNN也已联系英国司法办公室寻求置评。

今年二月，前约克公爵成为几个世纪以来首位被捕的高级王室成员，这是他与已故性侵犯者杰弗里·爱泼斯坦之间长达数年的丑闻中最新的非同寻常的进展，这场丑闻摧毁了他的名誉，并将王室推入了危机。

2月19日，在他66岁生日当天，他在位于英格兰东部诺福克郡桑德灵厄姆庄园（Sandringham estate）的新家中被警方拘留。他被带到艾尔沙姆（Aylsham）警察局，接受了近12个小时的讯问，之后在接受调查的情况下获释。警方表示，目前尚未提出任何指控，调查仍在进行中。

蒙巴顿-温莎被捕之前，警方曾表示正在评估这位前王子是否在担任英国贸易特使的十年间与爱泼斯坦分享了机密信息。

据英国媒体报道，蒙巴顿-温莎强烈否认与爱泼斯坦的任何交易中存在任何不当行为，并否认从其贸易特使的角色中获得任何个人利益。

Jeff Spicer/Pool/路透社

安德鲁·蒙巴顿-温莎为何被捕？以下是关于“公职人员行为不当”你需要了解的信息。

2019年，在接受BBC采访时，他因与爱泼斯坦的友谊而引发轩然大波，随后辞去了王室公职。但与这位已故金融家相关的头条新闻仍然不断困扰着这位名誉扫地的王室成员。2025年，在弗吉尼亚·朱弗雷（Virginia Giuffre）的遗作出版后，查尔斯国王剥夺了弟弟的王子头衔。朱弗雷是爱泼斯坦的著名指控者，她声称蒙巴顿-温莎在她十几岁时曾性侵她。

吉弗雷——王子声称从未见过她——于2025年4月自杀身亡，享年41岁。除了否认所有针对他的指控外，蒙巴顿-温莎此前还坚称，他从未目睹或怀疑过爱泼斯坦被指控的任何行为。