‘Something is building.’ Is the arrest of former Prince Andrew the first domino to fall?
The arrest signals fresh momentum in the broader fight to obtain justice for victims and advance prosecutorial efforts, as scrutiny into Epstein’s links start to take on an international dimension, experts said.
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew, was arrested on Thursday in a development that shocked many in the West and signaled that powerful figures linked to disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein might finally face accountability.
The arrest signals new momentum in the broader fight to obtain justice for victims and advance prosecutorial efforts, as scrutiny into Epstein’s links start to take on an international dimension, experts said.
The Thames Valley Police said they had opened an investigation and arrested “a man in his sixties from Norfolk on suspicion of misconduct in public office,” officials said in a statement issued on Thursday. The officials said they would not be naming the man in accordance with national guidance.
“We understand the significant public interest in this case, and we will provide updates at the appropriate time,” the police wrote.
Though the authorities have been tight-lipped about the details, documents released in the latest batch of the Epstein files suggest that U.K. police may be looking into whether Mountbatten-Windsor had been sharing confidential government documents with the convicted sex offender in his capacity as a trade envoy for the British government, which he served from 2001 to 2011.
“Among the Epstein files released by the U.S. Department of Justice were documents that appeared to show the former prince forwarding sensitive government documents and commercial information to the convicted sex offender,” said Ursula Smartt, an associate professor of law and criminology and a legal careers counselor at Northeastern University London.
Smartt said that misconduct in public office is a common law offense, meaning it is based on prior court rulings, or precedent, rather than a specific law passed by Parliament.
For Andrew, that means prosecutors would have to fit the allegations squarely within those established legal boundaries, rather than relying on a broadly written law. If prosecutors decide to formally charge Mountbatten-Windsor with the offense, it carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, Smartt said.
She explained that misconduct in public office is an indictable-only offense, one that is tried before a judge and jury in the Crown Court of England and Wales. The charge applies where a public official is alleged to have willfully abused or neglected the duties of their office in a way that amounts to a serious breach of the public’s trust, without reasonable justification.
Nikos Passas, professor of criminology and criminal justice and co-director of Northeastern’s Institute for Security and Public Policy, said Mountbatten-Windsor’s arrest puts pressure on the U.S. administration to clarify next steps in the Epstein investigation and determine whether additional disclosures or charges are warranted.
There are also investigations underway in France, Norway and other localities, including one in New Mexico looking at allegations of abuse of trafficked women and other serious claims linked to Epstein’s Zorro Ranch. Justice officials in New Mexico reopened an investigation into the 33,000-square-foot ranch and are reportedly looking into allegations of bodies buried there referenced in a 2019 email included in the files.
“This may prompt the Justice Department to reassess what to do with the remaining files that have not been disclosed or shared with the public or Congress,” Passas said. “Something is building, no doubt.”
Mountbatten-Windsor’s arrest comes amid growing international scrutiny of the Epstein network. The United Nations Human Rights Council, which appoints independent experts to monitor and report on human rights violations worldwide, said in a statement this week that the case shows “the marks of a crime against humanity” and warrants further investigation.
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“So grave is the scale, nature, systematic character, and transnational reach of these atrocities against women and girls, that a number of them may reasonably meet the legal threshold of crimes against humanity,” the council’s experts said.
It is the first time a member of the Royal Family — the brother of a sitting monarch — has ever been arrested in connection with alleged misconduct of any kind in public office.
The former duke, who remains eighth in line to the throne, was required to vacate his residence at Royal Lodge in Windsor on 4 February 2026 at the direction of his brother, King Charles III.
The latest release of the Epstein files suggest possible misconduct by other prominent British figures. Police are probing whether Peter Mandelson, a longtime politician with the Labour Party and former British ambassador to the United States, shared sensitive government documents with Epstein. Mandelson, who left his ambassadorial post in 2026 after being dismissed by Prime Minister Keir Starmer, denies any wrongdoing.
Also named in the files is Sarah Ferguson, Mountbatten-Windsor’s ex-wife, who the files demonstrate maintained a personal correspondence with him long after his 2008 conviction.
King Charles addressed the situation in a statement, stressing that the investigation into his brother would be handled “in the appropriate manner and by the appropriate authorities,” and affirmed that the police have “our full and wholehearted support and co-operation.”
“Let me state clearly: the law must take its course,” the King said. “As this process continues, it would not be right for me to comment further on this matter. Meanwhile, my family and I will continue in our duty and service to you all.”
