Buckingham Palace staff were allegedly handed tens of thousands of emails concerning Prince Andrew's conduct as a trade envoy six years ago, according to new court documents. The emails, reportedly taken from a former business contact, were sent to the Lord Chamberlain in 2020 and contained detailed information about the former prince's financial activities during his decade-long tenure as UK trade envoy between 2001 and 2011.
The BBC reported on the claims, which have prompted The Mirror to seek comment from both Andrew's representatives and Buckingham Palace. This development follows a statement from a top policing union assuring victims of Jeffrey Epstein that they will be treated with "care, compassion and respect," amid concerns that some are hesitant to come forward.
A National Police Chiefs' Council spokesperson said: "As part of the UK policing response, efforts have been made to contact victim-survivors who have already chosen to share their experiences publicly. In some cases, this has involved engagement with legal representatives; however, we recognise that we have not yet been able to reach everyone and our efforts continue. We understand that coming forward can be incredibly difficult, and we want anyone affected to know they can do so in their own time, when they feel ready. Our door remains open. Should any victim-survivors choose to contact UK policing, they will be treated with care, compassion and respect, with their wellbeing, privacy and right to anonymity at centre of our response."
American lawyer Brad Edwards, who represents several Epstein victims, told the BBC he has "multiple clients" who could speak about Andrew but have low confidence in UK police and privacy concerns. Detectives from Thames Valley Police are now expected to consider allegations of sexual misconduct as part of their inquiry into potential misconduct in public office. The legal definition of this offence is broad, encompassing sharing confidential financial information, financial misconduct, wilful neglect of duty, sexual misconduct, corruption, improper interference, conflict of interest, perverting the course of justice, dishonesty or fraudulent conduct, and misconduct leading to personal gain.
Police are understood to be concerned that the public believes they are only focused on accusations that Andrew shared information while a trade envoy, when in fact the investigation covers a wider range of conduct. Andrew has consistently denied any wrongdoing regarding his links to Epstein, who died in 2019.
