Newspapers from across the world have reacted with astonishment to the arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, who was released under investigation yesterday after being held for 11 hours on suspicion of misconduct in public office.
Some media outlets declared the unprecedented event heralded the ‘end of privilege’, as others marvelled at Britain’s ‘ex-prince at rock bottom’ and dubbed Andrew the ‘prince of darkness’.
The former Duke of York was later photographed slumped in the back of a car leaving Aylsham police station in Norfolk, looking haggard and haunted, before police resumed their search of Royal Lodge, his former home in Berkshire, this morning.
He is facing allegations of having shared sensitive information with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein while serving as Britain’s trade envoy, a charge liable for trial by jury and carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
Andrew has not been charged and has consistently and strenuously denied any wrongdoing in relation to the disgraced financier.
The arrest sensationally took place on his 66th birthday on the King’s private Sandringham Estate in Norfolk, leaving global news brands shocked at the former prince’s dramatic fall from grace.
Plastered on most front-pages was the stunned former prince in the back of a police vehicle with his fingers steepled anxiously – an the image that will no-doubt become the counterpart to the other infamous photograph of Andrew, standing beside a 17-year-old Virginia Giuffre in a London townhouse, 25 years ago.
From the United States and Canada to Spain, Italy, Germany, Switzerland and Ireland, readers from across the world watched in disbelief as arguably the biggest crisis for the monarchy in 400 years befell Britain.
Italy’s Corriere Della Sera says the ‘Crown is in crisis’
‘Former Prince Andrew, suspected in the Epstein case, has been arrested,’ writes the Swiss French-language daily newspaper Tribune de Genève
Le Parisien brands Andrew the ‘prince of darkness’
‘For a long time, it was almost inconceivable that a member of the British royals would be in prison,’ writes Germany’s Frankfurter Rundschau, responding to yesterday’s news of Andrew being taken into custody at 8am at Wood Farm on Sandringham Estate, where he was staying.
‘Former Prince Andrew is now being held accountable for his connections to convicted sex offender Epstein,’ it continues, with a headline declaring that the decades of privilege the 66-year-old once enjoyed have finally come to an end.
Die Welt, another German newspaper, declared the former Duke of York was at ‘rock bottom’, following the allegations of misconduct in public office.
In the wake of his brother’s arrest, King Charles III released a historic personal statement, expressing his ‘deepest concern’ at the news police had picked up Andrew on the morning of his 66th birthday in extraordinary scenes.
‘I have learned with the deepest concern the news about Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and suspicion of misconduct in public office,’ Charles, 77, said.
‘What now follows is the full, fair and proper process by which this issue is investigated in the appropriate manner and by the appropriate authorities.
‘In this, as I have said before, they have our full and wholehearted support and co-operation.
‘Let me state clearly: the law must take its course.’
Frankfurter Rundschau says the former prince’s arrest heralds ‘the end of privilege’
The Wall Street Journal reported on Andrew’s arrest following the release of the Epstein files
Canada’s The Globe And Mail publishes the now infamous photo of Andrew in a police car
As scores of unmarked police vehicles arrived at Royal Lodge this morning to continue their investigation into Andrew, the question on everyone’s lips is whether this royal scandal marks the beginning of the end for the monarchy.
It is understood that Prince William and Princess Catherine supported the King’s remarks yesterday, when he said the ‘law must take its course’ in relation to the former Duke of York.
Italy’s Corriere Della Sera has declared that the British ‘Crown is in crisis’ following the shock arrest, but only time will tell the true impact of Andrew’s actions on the institution’s image and its ultimate longevity.
Andrew would not have been given any special treatment while in custody, experts said.
He would have been held in a small cell with just a bed and a toilet before being summoned for an interview with his lawyer present.
The former prince likely had his fingerprints and a mugshot taken on arrival – and was probably offered a chance to phone a friend.
He was questioned for almost 12 hours before Thames Valley Police confirmed that he had been released under investigation at 7.37pm.
Detectives are probing Andrew’s conduct as a trade envoy for the UK after emails in the Epstein Files suggested he may have shared confidential information with his paedophile friend, including reports of his official visits and potential investment opportunities.
But leading UK lawyers believe that police, who are searching Andrew’s homes and have access to his devices, can now widen their investigation into any alleged sexual offences.
Spain’s El País weighs in on Andrew’s arrest amid the Epstein scandal
‘Mountbatten-Windsor released after “misconduct” arrest’, writes the Irish Independent
Marcus Johnstone, a leading criminal defence lawyer specialising in sex crime, believes that Andrew’s arrest will allow detectives to hunt for evidence related to sexual offences, including allegations Andrew allowed Epstein sex trafficking victims into Buckingham Palace.
Mr Johnstone told the Daily Mail: ‘Andrew’s arrest is not unexpected. His financial ties to Epstein are his legal weak spot.
‘Investigators will be using this as the basis to scrutinise his relationship with Epstein even further, and in doing so build a case that Andrew participated in some way in Epstein’s sex trafficking operation.
‘His home can now be searched, and formal questions can now be put to him at interview’.
Richard Scorer, the head of abuse law at firm Slater and Gordon, said: ‘If prosecutors build a case which convinces a jury that Andrew misused his position to have sex with young women, in my opinion he could be pursued on that basis.’
When Andrew was arrested, it had nothing to do with the late Ms Giuffre, the prominent accuser of Epstein and sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell, who alleged the former prince had sex with her three times as a teenager.
Despite that fact, following news of Andrew’s arrest on suspicion of misconduct in public office, Ms Giuffre’s siblings celebrated the development, telling CBS News: ‘At last, today, our broken hearts have been lifted at the news that no one is above the law, not even royalty.
‘On behalf of our sister, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, we extend our gratitude to the UK’s Thames Valley Police for their investigation, and the arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. He was never a prince. For survivors everywhere, Virginia did this for you.’
Ms Giuffre, who took her own life last year, alleged Epstein and Maxwell trafficked her to Andrew when she was 17, first introducing her to him in London in 2001.
She claimed that after going to a nightclub, she was made to have sex with Andrew at Maxwell’s Belgravia home.
On the second occasion, it is alleged that Andrew sexually abused Ms Giuffre in Epstein’s New York mansion. And she alleged Andrew abused her a third time on Epstein’s island, Little St James, in the US Virgin Islands.
Andrew has always denied the claims and reached an out-of-court settlement with Ms Giuffre in 2022, but it contained no admission of liability or apology.