Police in Scotland launch Andrew and Epstein royal castle investigation

What the report says

Police in Scotland have opened an investigation into information about the time Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly Prince Andrew, spent with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell at the king’s Balmoral estate. According to Al Jazeera, Police Scotland said the inquiry is at an early stage and began after the force received information, but it did not identify any suspected offences or give further details.

The report says the investigation was first mentioned by The Daily Express, which linked it to claims that women were trafficked to the royal estate in the Scottish Highlands. Police Scotland said its work is evidence-led and focused on victim-survivor needs, while declining to comment further on an active case.

Al Jazeera notes that images released earlier by the US Department of Justice appeared to show Epstein and Maxwell on a shooting trip at Balmoral in 1999, though the article stresses that appearing in the files does not prove wrongdoing. The new Scottish inquiry adds to existing scrutiny of Epstein-related material being examined by multiple UK police forces.

The article also places the development in the wider context of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s long-running ties to Epstein, which have damaged the royal family’s reputation. He was stripped of his princely title and removed from Royal Lodge last year, and previously faced a police arrest in February on suspicion of misconduct in public office, which he has denied.