Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor Initiates Legal Challenge Against UK Police Over Epstein-Related Arrest

King Charles’ younger brother Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has initiated legal action against police in England regarding his earlier arrest this year, which involved suspicions of misconduct in public office following revelations from the Epstein files in the United States.

Mountbatten-Windsor, 66, has requested a judge to evaluate whether the actions taken against him by Thames Valley Police earlier this year were lawful, as first reported by Britain’s The Telegraph newspaper. He has filed a judicial review concerning the search warrants executed at his residence at the Sandringham Estate and his former home at Royal Lodge in Windsor, with a court hearing scheduled for Thursday according to British media.

Thames Valley Police confirmed to CNN that it is involved in legal proceedings regarding warrants previously obtained from the Central Criminal Court, declining further comment due to ongoing legal processes. CNN also contacted the UK Judicial Office for comment.

The former Duke of York became the first senior royal in centuries to be arrested in February, marking a major development in the ongoing scandal regarding his association with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Detained on his 66th birthday at his residence on the Sandringham estate in Norfolk, eastern England, he was taken to Aylsham police station for nearly 12 hours of questioning before being released under investigation without charges.

The police investigation follows assessments into whether the former prince shared confidential information with Epstein during his tenure as a UK trade envoy. Mountbatten-Windsor has consistently denied all wrongdoing related to Epstein and any personal gain from his trade envoy role, having stepped down from official royal duties in 2019 following a BBC interview.

Controversy continued as King Charles stripped his younger brother of his title as prince in 2025 following public outcry over a posthumous memoir by Virginia Giuffre, an Epstein accuser who alleged sexual assault by Mountbatten-Windsor when she was a teenager. Giuffre died by suicide in April 2025 at age 41, while Mountbatten-Windsor has denied ever meeting her, asserting he never witnessed or suspected Epstein's alleged behavior.