Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor Takes Police to Court to Challenge Warrants in Misconduct Investigation
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Post By
Emmie
- October 5, 2026
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor is taking legal action against Thames Valley Police over his February arrest, seeking a judicial review to quash the search warrants used to raid his properties.
The legal action marks the former prince's first major public pushback against the situation after losing his royal titles, public role, and official residences following repeated revelations regarding his ties to deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The 66-year-old was arrested on his birthday on February 19th at his home on the Sandringham estate in Norfolk. He was questioned for nearly 12 hours at Aylsham police station on suspicion of misconduct in public office before being released under investigation. Photograph evidence captured him leaving the station looking visibly drained and shaken.
Following the arrest, officers spent several days searching both his Marsh Farm residence in Sandringham and his former home, Royal Lodge, located on the Windsor estate.
The investigation was triggered after documents released from the Epstein files by the US Department of Justice appeared to show Mountbatten-Windsor forwarding confidential government information to Epstein during his decade-long tenure as a UK trade envoy between 2001 and 2011.
Addressing the legal challenge, Thames Valley Police confirmed:
"We are engaged in legal proceedings in relation to warrants previously obtained from the Central Criminal Court. As these legal proceedings are currently ongoing, it would be inappropriate for us to comment further."
The legal action targets both the chief constable of Thames Valley Police and the Central Criminal Court, where a judge originally authorized the warrants on February 18th. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Thursday afternoon, opening in private while the judge considers a request from police to withhold specific documents from public view.
Legal analysts point out that invalidating the search warrants might not automatically force law enforcement to surrender gathered evidence.
Nick Vamos, former head of special crime at the Crown Prosecution Service and criminal lawyer at Peters & Peters, explained:
"The police can apply back to the Crown Court to retain the material if they have grounds to immediately seize it again."
Thames Valley Police emphasized that its broader criminal investigation remains active, noting that officers have been "working with the United States Department of Justice to get further information that may be related to this investigation".
Detectives have also indicated that allegations of sexual misconduct could fall within the scope of the misconduct in public office inquiry.
Mountbatten-Windsor has consistently maintained his innocence, denying all allegations of wrongdoing, any personal gain from his trade role, or any knowledge of Epstein's illegal actions.
