Britain’s former prince, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, has taken his legal battle to the High Court, seeking to overturn search warrants obtained by police ahead of his arrest earlier this year, the UK judiciary confirmed on Monday.
The London court is set to hold a private hearing on Thursday, the judiciary said in a statement, as the 66-year-old royal challenges Thames Valley Police over searches of his former and current homes on royal estates.
The force arrested him on February 19 on suspicion of misconduct over his links to late US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. He has denied all wrongdoing.
Andrew was arrested in February on suspicion of misconduct during his time as a trade envoy, as UK police investigations into allegations emerging from the Jeffrey Epstein files gathered pace.
Unprecedented in Britain’s modern era, the arrest was a new blow for the ousted royal, who was marking his 66th birthday.
He was stripped of all his titles in 2025, having been forced out of his former home by his brother King Charles III.
New revelations in February appeared to show Andrew sent convicted US sex offender Epstein potentially confidential documents during his time as a UK trade envoy.
In a November 2010 email seen by AFP, Andrew appeared to share with Epstein reports on Vietnam, Hong Kong, Shenzhen and Singapore following an official visit to Asia.
The ex-royal, now known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, also reportedly sent the American financier details of the trip — on which he was accompanied by Epstein’s business associates — along with investment opportunities months later.
In March, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said that the former prince should be removed from the line of royal succession over his “deplorable” behaviour.
“There is a process in order to do it….but I certainly think his actions which are deplorable and have caused him to be stripped of his royal titles, certainly… necessitate his removal from the line of succession,” Carney had told reporters in Tokyo.
His comment came after Australia and New Zealand announced their support to remove Andrew from the line of succession.
AFP
