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U.S. Lawmakers Sound Off After Prince Andrew’s Arrest

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Prince Andrew
Photo Credit: Thorne1983, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

Former Prince Andrew was arrested on his 66th birthday Thursday in a stunning development tied to the ever-expanding Jeffrey Epstein scandal, marking the first arrest of a senior royal in centuries.

Thames Valley Police confirmed they arrested “a man in his sixties from Norfolk on suspicion of misconduct in public office” and carried out searches at addresses in Berkshire and Norfolk.

The force did not name the suspect in line with standard procedure, but multiple reports identified him as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the brother of King Charles III.

Six unmarked police vehicles were seen arriving shortly after 8 a.m. at Wood Farm, Andrew’s residence on the Sandringham estate.

Officers were later spotted at Royal Lodge near Windsor, his former home.

If charged and convicted of misconduct in public office, the offense carries a maximum sentence of life in prison under British law.

The arrest followed weeks of new scrutiny sparked by documents released by the U.S. Justice Department under the Epstein Files Transparency Act.

Police had said just over a week ago they were assessing fresh claims to determine whether a formal investigation was warranted.

King Charles responded with a measured but pointed statement.

“What now follows is the full, fair and proper process by which this issue is investigated in the appropriate manner and by the appropriate authorities,” he said.

“In this, as I have said before, they have our full and wholehearted support and co-operation. Let me state clearly: the law must take its course.”

He added that he would not comment further while the investigation unfolds and that the rest of the royal family would “continue in our duty and service to you all.”

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer echoed the principle of equal treatment under the law.

“I think that’s a matter for the police, they will conduct their own investigations, but one of the core principles in our system is that everybody is equal under the law and nobody is above the law,” Starmer told BBC News.

Andrew’s fall from grace has been swift and public. King Charles stripped him of his royal titles last year amid mounting pressure over his ties to Epstein and accusations brought by Virginia Giuffre, who alleged she was trafficked to have sex with him when she was underage.

Andrew has denied wrongdoing. He settled with Giuffre in 2022, reportedly paying around $16 million, while maintaining he admitted no liability.

Among the newly released emails that fueled the investigation are exchanges from 2010 when Andrew served as the United Kingdom’s trade envoy.

Documents appear to show he forwarded confidential reports about official visits to Singapore, Hong Kong and Vietnam to Epstein minutes after receiving them from his adviser.

Another exchange suggests Andrew shared what he described as “a confidential brief” on investment opportunities in southern Afghanistan, where British forces were based.

He told Epstein he was seeking his “comments, views or ideas as to whom I could also usefully show this to attract some interest.”

Earlier this month, police said they were examining whether the sharing of such documents amounted to misconduct while in public office.

Giuffre’s memoir described her first meeting with Andrew in graphic detail.

She wrote that Ghislaine Maxwell told her it was her job to “take care of the now former prince.”

Giuffre alleged she had sex with Andrew on multiple occasions and that Epstein paid her $15,000 for one encounter.

“He believed having sex with me was his birthright,” she wrote.

Giuffre died by suicide last year. Her siblings released a statement after news of the arrest broke.

“At last, today, our broken hearts have been lifted at the news that no one is above the law, not even royalty,” they said.

“On behalf of our sister, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, we extend our gratitude to the U.K.’s Thames Valley Police for their investigation, and the arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. He was never a prince. For survivors everywhere, Virginia did this for you.”

The arrest sent shockwaves across the Atlantic, where lawmakers have long pushed for accountability tied to the Epstein files.

Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna praised what he called Britain’s “moral clarity,” writing that the British response to the scandal was “inspiring.”

“The British have taken this scandal more seriously than we have,” he said per CNN.

“There is an appreciation in America, among the survivors, me and others in Congress for how the British people are handling this.”

“Not even princes are above the law,” he tweeted.

Republican Rep. Thomas Massie called the arrest “the metric [he] established for success of the Epstein Files Transparency Act.”

“Now we need JUSTICE in the United States. It’s time for @AGPamBondi and @FBIDirectorKash to act!” he posted.

House Oversight Committee Democrats described Andrew’s arrest as “an enormous step forward in our fight to secure justice” and accused the Trump administration of a “cover-up.”

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene contrasted the British action with what she called a lack of movement in the United States.

“The UK has arrested Andrew because of the Epstein files and over here the President signed an EO protecting cancer causing Glyphosate in our foods and we have zero Epstein related arrest and investigations since release of the files,” she wrote.

“We are on the verge of going to war against Iran. That’s the current state of MAGA.”

Rep. Nancy Mace framed the arrest as proof that congressional pressure worked.

“If you’re watching a former prince get arrested today, remember: four Republicans refused to flinch, refused to fold, and forced the Epstein files into the light,” she posted. “Courage has consequences. So does corruption.”

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