What else will Andrew police find? Sex
crimes accusations mount as cops search Royal Lodge for second day and
Gordon Brown submits 'sex trafficking dossier'
By Juan Pardo Navarro
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.
The
former Duke of York was held on suspicion of misconduct in public
office after a raid on his Sandringham home on his 66th birthday
yesterday.
He looked visibly shocked as
he left Aylsham Police Station in Norfolk last night after more than 11
hours in custody having been processed like a 'common criminal
suspect'.
A convoy of police entered
Royal Lodge, Windsor, this morning as searches of his former home
continue. A patrol car arrived at Wood Farm, Sandringham, at 6am, where
Andrew is staying.
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.
It
came as the Epstein Files revealed that Andrew has been on the radar of
US law enforcement, including the FBI, for approaching 15 years.
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.'
Police
vans approach Royal Lodge, the former Windsor residence of Andrew
Mountbatten Windsor, today, as searches continue following his arrest
Officers were also at Wood Farm at Sandringham at just after 6am today
A
shocked Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor as he is released from police
custody on Thursday evening. Experts say his arrest for misconduct in
public office could allow police to build a case that he was part of
Jeffrey Epstein's sex trafficking operation
It came as prime minister
Gordon Brown has also submitted new evidence to at least four UK police
forces in relation to 'trafficked girls and women' as he pushes for
Andrew to face a wide investigation.
Using
flight logs in the Epstein Files, Mr Brown helped reveal that Epstein's
paedophile's Boeing 727–100 private jet, dubbed the 'Lolita Express'
because he used it to host orgies and traffic girls, landed around 90 times in the UK.
The
ex-PM has said the flights, many of them through Stansted, are 'by far
the biggest scandal of all' and he has urged Scotland Yard to begin a
sex trafficking investigation into the former Duke of York.
He
said last night: 'I have submitted a five-page memorandum to the
Metropolitan, Surrey, Sussex, Thames Valley and other relevant UK police
constabularies.
'This
memorandum provides new and additional information to that which I
submitted last week to the Met, Essex and Thames Valley police forces
where I expressed my concern that we secure justice for trafficked girls
and women.'
A haggard Andrew was driven away from a police station on Thursday 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.
As his arrest triggered arguably the biggest crisis in the monarchy for nearly 400 years,
his brother, the King, insisted Andrew should be subject to the full
force of British justice, saying: 'The law must take its course.'
In
an unprecedented and historic personal statement, Charles, 77,
expressed his 'deepest concern' at the news police had picked up Andrew,
on his 66th birthday, in extraordinary scenes on Thursday morning.
The King also pledged his 'full and wholehearted support and co-operation' with the ongoing police investigation.
The charge is a rare but serious crime, liable for trial by jury, and carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
He has not yet been charged.
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.
Following
days of behind-closed-doors planning, officers from Thames Valley
Police swept along the Sandringham roads in six unmarked police vehicles
at 8am.
In the tightly co-ordinated
operation, one car advanced on Wood Farm - Prince Philip's former home
which is being used as a temporary bolt-hole by Andrew - via its main
driveway while the others circled towards the back, blocking the rear
entrance of the five-bedroom property.
While Andrew was being
taken into custody at the unassuming Aylsham Police Station about an
hour away, a simultaneous raid was being launched 130 miles west at
Royal Lodge, his former home in the grounds of Windsor Great Park.
Andrew's recent departure from the mansion was so swift that many of his belongings remain in the property.
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.
The ex-Duke is accused of passing potentially confidential and sensitive documents to his friend, convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, while working as a UK trade envoy between 2001 and 2011.
The
clamour for a police investigation had reached a crescendo in recent
days following revelations in the three million pages of Epstein Files
released by the US Department of Justice at the end of last month.
The investigation and now arrest of a senior member of the Royal Family - the first since Charles I was taken prisoner by parliamentarians in 1637 - has sparked an unprecedented crisis for the monarchy.
While
the King has done his best to distance himself from his disgraced
brother, including stripping him of his remaining titles and securing
his departure from his Royal Lodge mansion last October, the charge
still relates to his time as a working royal.
It
will, inevitably, raise questions as to who else knew about his
behaviour during the decade he served as the UK's globe-trotting
'special representative' for trade and industry, apparently feathering
both his own nest and those of his questionable friends.
And
it could see senior royal officials, both past and present, dragged
into the official police investigations - as well as other members of
the royal family, most notably his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, and
daughters, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie as possible witnesses.
They have all been frequently referred to in Epstein's recently revealed correspondence, particularly the former duchess.
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News
that police were on the Sandringham estate was broken by the Daily Mail
shortly after a convoy led by an unmarked police car, followed by a
Land Rover carrying the ex-prince's security detail, was seen leaving Sandringham.
His extraordinary arrest was confirmed at just after 10am.
Several
uniformed police officers stood guard at the gates of the Royal Lodge
as detectives painstakingly picked through the vast 30-room property for
several hours.
A steady stream of
unmarked police cars and vans, along with blacked-out SUVs, were seen
entering the idyllic grounds where the search appeared to continue until
about 4pm.
Thames Valley Police
confirmed that 'a man in his sixties' had been arrested in Norfolk on
suspicion of misconduct in public office.
Assistant Chief Constable Oliver Wright said: 'Following a thorough assessment, we have now opened an investigation into this allegation of misconduct in public office.
'It
is important that we protect the integrity and objectivity of our
investigation as we work with our partners to investigate this alleged
offence.'
Norfolk Police said it was 'supporting a Thames Valley Police investigation into misconduct in a public office'.
A photograph of Andrew lying on the floor with a young woman emerged as part of the DOJ's Epstein document release last month
At
12pm Charles issued his landmark statement, in which he tersely and
impersonally referred to his brother only as 'Andrew
Mountbatten-Windsor'.
He said: 'I have
learned with the deepest concern the news about Andrew
Mountbatten-Windsor and suspicion of misconduct in public office. 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. As this process continues, it would not be
right for me to comment further on this matter. Meanwhile, my family
and I will continue in our duty and service to you all.'
Significantly, it was signed 'Charles R. ', signifying this was a rare personal statement.
Royal insiders acknowledged the investigation will likely open
a 'Pandora's Box' for the Royal Family, striking at the heart of their
unique role in public life: a criminal investigation into the conduct of
a senior member of the Royal Family in the course of their public
duties.
Experts say Thames Valley
Police are only at the start of their investigations, which will likely
take months to conclude. The possibility of charges would be decided in
conjunction with the Crown Prosecution Service.
Thames Valley Police confirmed shortly after 7.30pm on Thursday that Andrew had been released from custody.
In a statement, they said: 'We can also confirm that our searches in Norfolk have now concluded.'
It is understood searches at Royal Lodge remain ongoing and will resume on Friday.
It
is believed their inquiries refer to a series of emails released as
part of US investigations into prolific sex offender Epstein in which
Andrew appears to have forwarded sensitive documents about a range of
trade issues both before and after the billionaire's release from prison
on child sex offences.
On Thursday night, US President Donald Trump said he was 'very sad' to see news of the arrest.
Speaking to reporters on Air Force One, Mr 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 the King as a fantastic person, who is due to visit the US this year.
