Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor arrested on his birthday

London: British police have arrested Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor on suspicion of misconduct in public office over his links to Jeffrey Epstein, after visiting his country home at the royal estate at Sandringham.

Thames Valley police, one of the police forces involved in multiple investigations into the former prince, confirmed it had arrested a man in Norfolk – the location of the Sandringham estate – after carrying out searches.

“The man remains in police custody at this time,” the police said.

“We will not be naming the arrested man, as per national guidance. Please also remember that this case is now active so care should be taken with any publication to avoid being in contempt of court.”

Assistant Chief Constable Oliver Wright said: “Following a thorough assessment, we have now opened an investigation into this allegation of misconduct in public office.”

Police were seen visiting Mountbatten-Windsor’s country home in a major step to expand an investigation into his ties to Epstein, one day after police chiefs set up a new group to coordinate their inquiries.

The police arrived at the home on the royal family’s Sandringham estate in six unmarked cars early on Thursday morning (about 7pm on Thursday, AEDT) and were seen carrying laptops and other equipment.

Observers told British media outlets the group included about eight officers in plain clothes and that one car arrived at the front of the former prince’s home, known as Wood Farm, while others arrived at the rear of the building.

The police visit, on the former prince’s 66th birthday, came almost three weeks after the release of millions of documents from the Epstein files at the US Department of Justice.

Mr Mountbatten-Windsor has faced accusations for many years that he sexually assaulted Virginia Roberts Giuffre, but he has repeatedly denied the claims.

The documents released three weeks ago revealed new details including email exchanges that suggested a Russian woman in her 20s was sent to the UK with Epstein’s knowledge to visit Mountbatten-Windsor, but the former prince also denied these claims.

Further investigations began when the British media reported last year that Mountbatten-Windsor asked one of his royal protection officers to look into the background of Roberts Giuffre after her claims appeared in the media.

The Metropolitan Police has made inquiries into the royal protection officers.

Separately, Thames Valley Police has been examining claims that Andrew sent government documents to Epstein while the former prince was working as an official trade envoy and had access to reports on trade missions and investment opportunities.

The night before the arrest, British police chiefs revealed they had set up a new group to coordinate the various investigations.

The National Police Chiefs’ Council said it was assessing the details being made public in millions of documents from the US Department of Justice.

“A national coordination group has been set up to support a small number of forces assessing allegations that have emerged following the publication of the US DoJ Epstein files,” said a spokesperson for the council on Wednesday night (early on Thursday, AEDT).