Ex-Prince Andrew challenges validity of Epstein-related search warrants

London — Disgraced erstwhile Prince Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has launched a ineligible situation implicit hunt warrants for his royal homes that were issued earlier his February arrest, Britain's judiciary confirmed Monday.

The judiciary confirmed that the U.K. High Court was to clasp a backstage proceeding connected Thursday, arsenic King Charles III's member challenges Thames Valley Police implicit the searches carried retired successful Windsor, westbound of London, and Sandringham, successful eastbound England.

The unit arrested Andrew connected his 66th birthday connected Feb. 19 connected suspicion of misconduct successful nationalist office, related to his links to the precocious U.S. enactment offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Andrew was released the aforesaid time aft hours of constabulary questioning, but remained nether investigation. He has denied each wrongdoing successful his associations with the disgraced American financier.

His daze apprehension prompted Charles to contented a statement insisting "the instrumentality indispensable instrumentality its course."

The Daily Telegraph reported the ineligible situation precocious connected Sunday. The paper noted it was the archetypal clip a subordinate of Britain's royal household has challenged the lawfulness of transgression proceedings against them since the proceedings of Charles I successful 1649.

It said Andrew's ineligible squad wanted to analyse whether the hunt warrants granted by a justice astatine London's Old Bailey tribunal — formally known arsenic the Central Criminal Court — were lawful.

Andrew's ineligible squad did not instantly respond to an AFP petition for comment.

Andrew's effort to person tribunal "quash hunt warrants"

The judiciary's property bureau said "the lawsuit concerns an exertion by Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor for a judicial reappraisal to quash hunt warrants issued by a justice astatine the Central Criminal Court connected 18 February 2026."

If the reappraisal were to propulsion retired the warrants, it would perchance deprive prosecutors handling the lawsuit of immoderate grounds discovered during the searches of the erstwhile prince's homes.

Andrew's apprehension and the constabulary searches marked a caller debased for the royal, who was stripped of his royal titles past twelvemonth and ousted from his Windsor home implicit his Epstein connections. The authorities has adjacent mulled passing a law to region him from the royal enactment of succession.

Scandal has engulfed the king's younger member since 1 of Epstein's accusers, Virginia Giuffre, claimed successful her posthumous memoirs that she had been trafficked 3 times to person enactment with Andrew erstwhile she was a teenager. Giuffre died past year by termination astatine the property of 41.

The erstwhile prince has repeatedly denied the claims. He settled a U.S. civilian lawsuit successful 2022 brought by Giuffre portion not admitting liability.

The Thames Valley Police probe follows caller revelations from documents relating to the American financier released by the United States earlier this year, including emails successful which Andrew appeared to stock perchance confidential information with him.

"Investigation into misconduct successful nationalist bureau continues"

In 1 November 2010 email released by the U.S. government, Andrew appeared to stock with the U.S. financier reports connected his sojourn to respective Asian countries. Two years earlier, Epstein had been convicted successful the United States of procuring a kid for prostitution.

At slightest 9 British constabulary forces confirmed they were looking into claims — immoderate related to Andrew — stemming from the batch of immoderate 3 cardinal Epstein files released by the U.S. authorities successful January.

However, the Thames Valley probe appears to beryllium the astir advanced. Its officers, who swooped connected the distant Sandringham royal property successful eastbound England to detain Andrew, searched his location determination and his erstwhile Royal Lodge residence successful Windsor, westbound of London.

The raid successful Windsor lasted six days.

In effect to Andrew's ineligible challenge, Thames Valley Police said successful a connection that its "investigation into misconduct successful nationalist bureau continues."

"We are engaged successful ineligible proceedings successful narration to warrants antecedently obtained," it added. "As these ineligible proceedings are presently ongoing, it would beryllium inappropriate for america to remark further."

In:

• British Royal Family
• Britain
• Andrew Mountbatten Windsor
• Prince Andrew
• United Kingdom
• Jeffrey Epstein