London- Andrew Mountbatten, the younger brother of Britain’s King Charles III, has been arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office.
Andrew Mountbatten is accused of supplying classified government documents to the notorious American criminal Jeffrey Epstein.
According to a news agency, Andrew Mountbatten Windsor was taken into custody on Thursday by investigators from Thames Valley Police for questioning.
Earlier this month, police had announced that they were investigating allegations that Andrew, while serving as a trade envoy, provided official documents to Jeffrey Epstein.
Andrew Mountbatten has previously denied any involvement in illegal activities related to Epstein and has expressed regret over his friendship with him. However, following the recent release of documents by the U.S. government, he has made no comment.
This is the first arrest of a senior member of the royal family of this nature.
In his statement, King Charles said: “The news regarding Andrew Mountbatten Windsor and the suspicion of misconduct in public office is deeply concerning. Authorities will have the full and complete support of the royal family, and the law must take its course.”
He further stated that it would not be appropriate to comment further during the legal proceedings.
It is worth noting that after the release of more than three million pages of documents related to Jeffrey Epstein, a new complaint was filed with the police against Andrew Mountbatten. The documents allegedly indicated that in 2010 he sent reports concerning official visits to Vietnam, Singapore, and other countries to Epstein.
Buckingham Palace had previously stated that it would fully cooperate with any police investigation, and the King had expressed “deep concern” over the allegations that had emerged regarding Andrew’s conduct.
