UK police say ex-Prince Andrew released under investigation

DW News · Feb 19, 2026 · Collected from RSS

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Skip next section Closing summaryFebruary 20, 2026Closing summaryWe're ending our live coverage of the arrest and release of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly Prince Andrew. Thanks for following along with us. Here's a summary of the main news regarding Andrew's arrest: Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office for confidential government documents he is alleged to have provided while a British trade envoy to convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The allegations originate from documents released by the US Department of Justice as part of the so-called Epstein Files Mountbatten-Windsor was held in police custody for about 11 hours and released "under investigation," police said. King Charles said the royals would fully cooperate with authorities and that the law must take its course. Mountbatten-Windsor has denied any wrongdoing over his ties to Epstein, but he has not responded to the latest allegations. https://p.dw.com/p/596VkSkip next section Likely scenario would be seeing Andrew 'in a criminal court,' royal biographer tells DWFebruary 19, 2026Likely scenario would be seeing Andrew 'in a criminal court,' royal biographer tells DWRoyal biographer Christopher Wilson spoke to DW about the arrest of ex-Prince Andrew and surmised that authorities would have gathered "a huge body of evidence" beforehand. "The police, and particularly politicians behind them, would not allow an intrusion of this kind and an arrest to take place unless they're pretty certain that they've got a watertight case against Andrew," Wilson said. The historian said a likely scenario would be seeing Andrew "in a criminal court." "I don't think he'll escape. I think he will stay and face the music," Wilson said. "It will be a sensation. No member of the royal family has been arrested for 600 years, and the last person to do that was King Charles the First, who had his head chopped off once they had actually finished with him in court," Wilson explained. "I can't see that happening to former Prince Andrew but he certainly faces a bleak future in this year coming," Wilson said. https://p.dw.com/p/596S8Skip next section Trump says former prince's arrest 'very sad'February 19, 2026Trump says former prince's arrest 'very sad'US President Donald Trump has commented after the arrest of former Prince Andrew's arrest in connection with Jeffrey Epstein scandal. "I think it's a shame. I think it's very sad. I think it's so bad for the royal family. It's very, very sad," Trump told reporters on Air Force One. Trump also praised King Charles, saying he "would be coming to our country very soon." The US president made the comments as he travelled to Georgia for an event. https://p.dw.com/p/596RxSkip next section Andrew leaves police stationFebruary 19, 2026Andrew leaves police stationThe former UK prince, Andrew, has left a police station around 11 hours after being arrested earlier in the day. Police said he had "been released under investigation." "We can also confirm that our searches in Norfolk have now concluded," Thames Valley Police said, in reference to the royal Sandringham estate. https://p.dw.com/p/596LxSkip next section Background — what you need to know about Andrew Mountbatten-WindsorFebruary 19, 2026Background — what you need to know about Andrew Mountbatten-WindsorNot familiar with Elizabeth II's second son, the first baby born to a reigning British monarch in a century? Unclear on the 66-year-old Gourdonston School alumni's naval background, or his highly publicized marriage to and split from Sarah Ferguson? https://p.dw.com/p/596CXSkip next section Recap — in case you're just joining usFebruary 19, 2026Recap — in case you're just joining usImages of unmarked police outside Andrew's Sandringham residence prompted first reports of the operationImage: Peter Nicholls/AFP/Getty ImagesIt's been a busy day in the UK with the arrest of King Charles III's younger brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, amid an investigation into possible misconduct in public office. The former Duke of York, who turned 66 on Thursday, was taken into custody by police in unmarked cars at his Norfolk residence before noon. King Charles III later said that "the law must take its course," and repeated a pledge from Buckingham Palace to cooperate with Thames Valley Police if requested. Andrew had long been plagued by scandal surrounding his association with deceased US financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, but the latest release of files had renewed scrutiny of the man stripped of his royal titles late last year. Police have not commented in detail on the ongoing investigation but it is thought to be connected to the emails published en masse by the US Deparment of Justice on January 30. Several of these were from or to an addressee labeled either "A" or "the Duke." Since that publication, an anti-monarchy group in the UK known as Republic said it had filed a formal complaint pertaining to emails which seemed to show Andrew had forwarded information on foreign trips he had made as a UK trade envoy in 2010. British politicians have not exactly rushed to comment, perhaps in part after police issued an appeal to consider contempt of court risks, but Prime Minister Keir Starmer had said shortly before the news broke that "nobody is above the law."UK: Former Prince Andrew arrested at homeTo view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video https://p.dw.com/p/5966BSkip next section UK PM Starmer: 'Nobody is above the law' February 19, 2026UK PM Starmer: 'Nobody is above the law' A few hours before the news of the police investigation broke on Thursday, Prime Minsiter Keir Starmer was asked about Mountbatten-Windsor on the BBC Breakfast television show. "One of the core principles in our system is that everybody is equal under the law, and nobody is above the law," Starmer, formerly a director of public prosecutions, said. "And it is important that that is applied across the board." You can watch a clip here. PM Starmer: Nobody is above the lawTo view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video https://p.dw.com/p/595G9Skip next section Senior royal arrest unprecedented in modern UK history, but many past parallels existFebruary 19, 2026Senior royal arrest unprecedented in modern UK history, but many past parallels existAn arrest of a senior royal family member has not taken place in the UK for well over a century, making Thursday's developments more or less unique in a modern British law enforcement context. Nevertheless, the arrest, detention or legal punishment of senior relatives of the kings and queens of England is by no means unprecedented if you look further back into history. Indeed, these cases tended to involve much higher and more violent stakes than Thursday's. A very abridged selection follows: In 1330, King Edward III successfully launched a coup at the age of 17 to seize power from his mother's husband, Roger Mortimer, who had been the de facto ruler since Edward was formally crowned three years earlier. He imprisoned Mortimer and his mother Isabella of France. During the 15th century civil war known as the Wars of the Roses, the last Plantaganet king, Richard III is thought to have put his nephews in the Tower of London, from which they never emerged, albeit without ever formally arresting them. After the Tudors came to power and deposed Richard, their second king, Henry VIII, would famously imprison and ultimately execute two of his six wives — Anne Boleyn and Katherine Howard. Henry's penchant for divorce led to more than a century of intermittent royal and civil conflict surrounding Britain's switch from Catholicism to a form of Protestantism: This included the imprisonment of the woman who would become Queen Elizabeth I under her sister Mary I; Elizabeth I jailing and then executing her cousin Mary Queen of Scots; Charles I being publicly beheaded, leading to the only period without an English king or queen in around a millennium; and England's last Catholic king, James II, being deposed in 1688. https://p.dw.com/p/594UZSkip next section Accuser Giuffre's relatives say Andrew 'was never a prince'February 19, 2026Accuser Giuffre's relatives say Andrew 'was never a prince'The family of deceased Epstein and Andrew accuser Virginia Giuffre issued a statement to CBS News in the US in light of Thursday's developments. "At last, today, our broken hearts have been lifted at the news that no one is above the law, not even royalty," Giuffre's siblings said in a statement. "He was never a prince. For survivors everywhere, Virginia did this for you," they wrote. Giuffre died by suicide last April. Her book was published posthumously later that year, alleging three sexual enconters with Andrew. Andrew reached an out-of-court settlement with Giuffre in March 2022. Based on the very limited preliminary information, Andrew's reported arrest on Thursday appears related to suspicion of "misconduct in public office" rather sexual misconduct allegations, which he has denied. If you are suffering from serious emotional strain or suicidal thoughts, do not hesitate to seek professional help. You can find information on where to find such help, no matter where you live in this world, at this website: https://befrienders.org/ https://p.dw.com/p/593KoSkip next section Popular young prince who later fell from grace, partly at hands of Emily MaitlisFebruary 19, 2026Popular young prince who later fell from grace, partly at hands of Emily MaitlisAndrew served in the Falklands War in his youth, this garden party for veterans of that conflict at Buckingham Palace in London took place in 2016Image: Photoshot/picture allianceQueen Elizabeth II's second son, Andrew, the spare rather than the heir to use the phrase popularized by the Netflix series "The Crown," was rather a popular royal in his younger life. Gregarious and out