A number of unmarked vehicles believed to be police cars have been pictured entering Royal Lodge today as searches continue following Andrew’s arrest.

Last night Thames Valley Police said searches in Norfolk at Andrew’s new home in Sandringham had concluded but that activity in Berkshire was still continuing.

Police were seen entering Windsor’s Royal Lodge, Andrew’s home of more than 20 years, yesterday following news of his arrest.

Read our comment on the future of the monarchy inside today’s Daily Mail…

Were the Royal Family ever brought so low? They have weathered many profound crises down through the years but the arrest of the King’s brother, on suspicion of handing confidential state documents to the world’s most notorious paedophile, plumbs new depths.

While it was being described as the greatest threat to the Monarchy since the abdication of Edward VIII, this is a scandal of a very different hue.

Like the running psychodrama between Charles and Diana and the tawdry Harry and Meghan saga, the abdication was essentially about relationships. But Andrew is accused of base criminality, which puts the House of Windsor in an unprecedented and hugely dangerous situation.

It goes without saying that the former prince is entitled to the presumption of innocence and he denies breaking the law. But documents suggest he sent confidential reports on his commercial missions as a UK trade envoy to Jeffrey Epstein.

Read the full comment piece here:

by Martin Robinson

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s arrest on suspicion of misconduct in public office may allow police to ‘build a case’ that he was an alleged part of Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking operation.

A convoy of police entered Royal Lodge, Windsor, this morning as searches of his former home continue.

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.

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.

The family of Virginia Giuffre have thanked the King for ‘standing behind survivors’ describing Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s arrest as ‘a win’.

Ms Giuffre, who died by suicide last year, alleged she was forced to have sex three times with Andrew, including when she was 17, and also during an orgy, after she was trafficked by Jeffry Epstein. Andrew has always strongly denied the claims.

In an interview with BBC Newsnight on Thursday, Sky Roberts, Ms Giuffre’s brother, praised the King for his response following Andrew’s arrest, adding: ‘We have yet to see that from our own government here.’

Mr Roberts said that although Andrew’s arrest ‘may not be a direct correlation to what the sexual assault allegations may be’, it was ‘a win’ for his sister and other survivors and ‘a very good start to opening an investigation’.

He said: ‘I will continue to commend the King for the actions that he’s taken.

Donald Trump said he was ‘very sad’ to see Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office.

Speaking to reporters on Air Force One, Trump said: ‘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. To me, it’s a very sad thing.’

The President praised King Charles III as a fantastic person ‘who’s obviously coming to our country very soon.’

Trump also claimed he was ‘totally exonerated’ after the release of files related to Jeffrey Epstein. The president came under renewed pressure today for the US to make similar arrests after British police took action against Andrew.

Dozens of journalists remain outside an entrance to Wood Farm on the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk this morning following Andrew’s arrest

Two uniformed police officers looked on as they stood next to a wall by the churchyard at St Peter church in Wolferton.

A nearby field was being used for parking to keep the road clear. At one point a black Range Rover left Wood Farm and later returned.

Earlier a marked police van circled through the village, along a lane past reporters.

Lisa Bloom, a prominent lawyer representing 11 victims of Jeffrey Epstein, has said she would like to see Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor investigated for ‘sexual ssault allegations against Virginia Giuffre and potentially others.’

Speaking to Sky News, Ms Bloom praised UK authorities for arresting Andrew as it shows ‘no one is above the law’.

But while she said his arrest on suspicion of misconduct in public office ‘matters’, she would also like to see the former prince probed over allegations made by Ms Giuffre.

Andrew has always denied wrongdoing over his links to Epstein and told the BBC in 2019 he had ‘no recollection of ever meeting’ MS Giuffre.

Ms Bloom told Sky News:

I’ll tell you something – Americans, when we are faced with somebody… who asks for forgiveness, who is honest – we tend to be a very forgiving people, and we give second chances.

by Alison Boshoff, Editor at Large

You might imagine Sarah Ferguson would be untouchable, commercially, given the stream of revelations about her friendship with the late paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

Yet I hear Ferguson has been entertaining offers for big–money speaking engagements – or was, at least until Thursday’s news of the arrest of her ex–husband, the former Prince Andrew.

Exchanges between her and an agent this month show she was hoping to net a fee of £150,000 plus all expenses (including two first–class flights) for a talk later this year.

I understand there’s no official deal between Ferguson and the agency Yrds, founded by her friend, the sports presenter Natalie Pinkham. The agency says it has not represented her since last summer. But after initially denying all knowledge of a deal, Yrds did concede yesterday it had ‘passed on’ an offer to her.

It can also be revealed that while her ex, Andrew Mountbatten–Windsor, is no longer styled a prince, and she stopped using her ‘Duchess of York’ title on official documents in October, Fergie is still using her old email – which includes ‘D of Y’ standing for the title.

Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie are said to be ‘in a state’ after their father Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office.

There has so far been no word from Andrew’s ex-wife Sarah Ferguson or their daughters with questions mounting over their whereabouts.

However, it was suggested last night that the Princesses have been left in turmoil over their father’s arrest, with one of the girls thought to be with their mother.

Sources also expressed concerns for Ms Ferguson’s mental health, saying the police investigation is ‘catastrophic for her and her girls’.

The former Duchess of York is said to lying low abroad, having spent a few days in the French Alps with friends before moving on to the United Arab Emirates.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s sensational arrest marks the culmination of a torrid saga that has lasted more than quarter of a century.

The former prince’s reckless and greed-fuelled friendship with paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein has ulitmately brought down his downfall.

Here, Guy Adams charts the course of his relationship with Epstein which includes partying with topless women in Phuket and his trips to ‘Paedo Island’

Read more here:

Allegations facing Andrew of misconduct in public office date back to when the former prince was a UK trade envoy from 2001 to 2011.

The length of time means police will potentially have millions of documents, messages and files to go through.

It also likely suggests it may be some time before investigators are able to piece everything together and decide whether or not there is cause to charge him.

After gathering and poring over evidence, if police believe they have enough evidence to charge, they present a case file to the CPS.

The Director of Public Prosecutions, Stephen Parkinson, would then likely decide whether or not to authorise a charge against the King’s brother.

A haggard Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was driven away from a police station last night following his arrest that shocked the world.

Some 11 hours after officers knocked on his door on the Sandringham estate to arrest him on suspicion of misconduct in public office, a stunned looking Andrew was released under investigation.

Andrew’s arrest sensationally took place on the monarch’s private estate in Norfolk, to where the former Duke of York was recently exiled following his public disgrace.

Neither the King nor Buckingham Palace were informed in advance, signalling the police’s determination to show that no-one – not even a former prince – is above the law.

Just after 7pm, following a day of being questioned, he emerged red-eyed and jowly, the image of his release encapsulating his fall from grace as he tried to cower on the back seat of a car driven by privately funded security guards.