Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew, was arrested on Thursday (February 19, 2026) by British police on allegations of misconduct in public office. The offense carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment if proven guilty.
Jennie Bond, a British royal family expert, labeled the incident a “nightmare” for King Charles III and Buckingham Palace.
Though the police have remained silent on the specifics of the investigation, the suspicions are believed to have stemmed from a breach of confidentiality involving Jeffrey Epstein. It occurred when Andrew served as the British government’s trade envoy in 2010 and 2011.
“This is genuinely shocking,” one individual said. “To put this into perspective, the last time a member of the royal family was imprisoned was in 1649.”
Royal expert found Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s arrest “extraordinary”
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As Bored Panda previously reported, Andrew was detained at the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk. The former Duke of York turned 66 the same day he was arrested.
Andrew has long been associated with Epstein. He has publicly admitted that he met the convicted offender in 1999. He was introduced by Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s close associate, who is serving prison time in the United States.
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As disturbing details of his close ties to Epstein accumulated over the years, he was stripped of his honorary military titles and the “His Royal Highness” honorific in 2022. In October 2025, Andrew announced he would also stop using the title of the Duke of York.
The latest development in Andrew’s fall from grace leaves the royal family in an even more precarious position, said experts, especially with there being no precedent for such an incident.
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Bond admitted to Sky News that the “extraordinary and shocking” arrest took her by surprise, as she expected a less severe fallout after the release of the Epstein files.
“The pressure has been building so much over the last few weeks that you felt that something had to happen,” she said. But she assumed the authorities would conduct searches of the former prince’s properties rather than arrest him outright.
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In a statement released after Andrew’s arrest, King Charles demanded a “full, fair, and proper process” and promised his “full and wholehearted support and co-operation” in the matter.
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“Let me state clearly: the law must take its course,” the statement read. “As this process continues, it would not be right for me to comment further on this matter.”
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor leaked the British government’s secrets to Jeffrey Epstein multiple times
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On January 30, the US Department of Justice released 3.5 million documents related to the late financier, collectively known as the Epstein files. Among them were emails from an account linked to Andrew that forwarded confidential details of the former royal’s trips to South Asia.
The position of a trade envoy, while not that of a civil servant, “carries with it a duty of confidentiality in relation to information received,” states UK Parliament’s official terms of appointment.
The emails indicate that on October 7, 2010, Andrew informed Epstein about his official visits to Singapore, Hong Kong, Shenzhen, and Vietnam.
After returning, he got his then-special assistant, Amit Patel, to send official reports of the visits to Epstein on November 30. The reports included sensitive information on investment opportunities.
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In a 2019 BBC Newsnight interview, Andrew claimed that he had broken off his friendship with Epstein in early December 2010. However, other documents show that their correspondence continued long after that.
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In late December 2010, Andrew emailed Epstein about a confidential briefing on the reconstruction of Helmand Province, Afghanistan. The project was funded and supervised by the British government and armed forces at the time.
In February 2011, he told Andrew to invest in a private equity firm he had recently visited.
World reacts to Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor reportedly being the first modern British royal to be arrested
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Peter Hunt, a former BBC royal correspondent, called the arrest of the eighth in line to the British throne a “seismic” event.
“Senior royals are now in uncharted waters that they are ill-equipped to navigate,” he said.
“They will have to answer questions about Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and be held accountable, something which, up until now, has been an alien concept for them.”
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“It’s an extraordinary moment, unprecedented in modern times, for the brother of the king to be arrested for a serious criminal offense,” said Craig Prescott, an expert in the constitutional and political role of the monarchy at Royal Holloway, University of London.
“I genuinely cannot think of a parallel close to that.”
“Super surprising this, the royal family couldn’t even protect him. They must have something big on him,” said a user who was surprised that the police would go as far as to arrest the king’s brother.
Another individual responded to that: “We don’t live in Game of Thrones. He’s just some f***ing guy. They’re all just people.”
Other royals have found themselves on the wrong side of the law in modern times, but none have been arrested as far as public knowledge goes.
In 2019, Prince Philip avoided arrest after crashing his Land Rover, hitting a car carrying a mother and child. He paid £35 ($47.10) in fines, was banned from driving for six months, and resigned from his role as president of the Institute of Advanced Motorists.
In 2002, Andrew’s sister Anne, the Princess Royal, was prosecuted for keeping a dangerous pet after her English bull terrier Dotty attacked and bit two boys in Windsor Great Park. She pleaded guilty and paid £500 ($672.86) in fines, £250 ($336.43) in compensation, and £148 ($199.17) in costs.
“Charles should abdicate.” Netizens shared their thoughts on Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s arrest after the Epstein files revelations
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