The enquiries are at an early stage and are focused on allegations that women may have been taken to the royal property as part of Epstein's sex-trafficking network.The investigation brings fresh scrutiny to Mountbatten-Windsor's association with the late American financier, whose links to the former prince have triggered multiple police enquiries and led to his removal from royal titles.EPSTEIN, MAXWELL AND ANDREW'S BALMORAL VISITSQuestions surrounding Epstein's visits to Balmoral have resurfaced following the release of photographs and other material by the US Department of Justice. Mountbatten-Windsor and Maxwell are said to have travelled to the royal estate aboard a private jet owned by Epstein in 2006.
Earlier, in 1999, Epstein and Maxwell had visited Royal Deeside, where a photograph released by US prosecutors showed the pair at a log cabin on the Balmoral estate. Other images made public by the US Department of Justice appear to show Mountbatten-Windsor accompanying Epstein on a shooting trip at the Scottish property.The latest police enquiries are examining the circumstances surrounding these visits, including claims that women were trafficked to the estate.
Police have not disclosed the specific allegations under investigation or identified any potential victims. According to the Daily Mail, the National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) confirmed that several forces across the UK are also examining material emerging from the release of the Epstein files.The Balmoral enquiries add another dimension to the police investigations surrounding Mountbatten-Windsor, who was arrested on February 19, his 66th birthday, on suspicion of misconduct in public office.
The arrest followed allegations that he shared sensitive information with Epstein during his tenure as the UK's trade envoy. Emails reportedly exchanged between the two men are being examined as part of the investigation.Plain-clothes officers searched his property before taking him into custody.
He was held for almost 12 hours at Aylsham Police Station in Norfolk, where he was questioned under caution.He was subsequently released under investigation and has strongly denied wrongdoing.The arrest marked an extraordinary moment for the British monarchy, as it was the first time in more than 350 years that a member of the royal family had been detained by police.VIRGINIA GIUFFRE'S SEXUAL ABUSE ALLEGATIONSMountbatten-Windsor's association with Epstein has been under intense scrutiny since Giuffre publicly accused the former prince of sexually abusing her on three occasions after she was trafficked by Epstein and Maxwell.In her posthumous memoir, Giuffre alleged that she was forced to have sex with Mountbatten-Windsor, including when she was 17 and during an orgy. She also described how Epstein and Maxwell allegedly moved her between locations across the world and made her available to powerful men.Giuffre had previously said she was working as a teenage spa attendant at US President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, when Maxwell approached her in 2000.According to her account, Maxwell recruited her as a masseuse for Epstein.
However, Giuffre alleged that she was subsequently subjected to sexual exploitation and pressured into providing sexual services to Epstein and his associates.Her allegations against Mountbatten-Windsor were accompanied by a widely circulated photograph showing the former prince with his arm around her waist at a London townhouse. The image was also included in her civil lawsuit against him.Mountbatten-Windsor has vehemently denied the allegations.
In 2022, he paid millions of dollars to settle Giuffre's civil sexual assault lawsuit without admitting liability, despite maintaining that he had never met her.Giuffre died by suicide in April 2025.Epstein, meanwhile, died in a New York jail in August 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex-trafficking charges involving dozens of teenage girls and young women, some as young as 14. Maxwell was subsequently convicted in the US for her role in recruiting and grooming underage girls for Epstein and was sentenced to 20 years in prison.KING CHARLES STRIPS ANDREW OF ROYAL TITLESThe latest police developments follow a series of unprecedented steps by Buckingham Palace to distance the monarchy from Mountbatten-Windsor's association with Epstein.
In October 2025, King Charles initiated a formal process to strip his younger brother of his royal titles and honours. The decision came after mounting pressure over his relationship with Epstein and renewed scrutiny following the publication of Giuffre's memoir.Mountbatten-Windsor had already announced that he would stop using the Duke of York title.
The palace subsequently confirmed that he would no longer be known as Prince Andrew and would instead be referred to as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.He was also asked to surrender his lease on Royal Lodge, his long-time residence in Windsor, and relocate to alternative private accommodation on the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk.- Ends