British police are looking into a claim that former Prince Andrew shared confidential trade documents with disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein while serving as a U.K. trade envoy.
Thames Valley Police said it was assessing new allegations against the younger brother of King Charles III, according to The Associated Press, BBC News and a number of other news organization.
“We can confirm receipt of this report and are assessing the information in line with our established procedures,” the police said in a statement, according to the AP.
The recent release by the Justice Department of millions of documents related to Epstein has intensified a storm that has raged around the former prince, now Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, and his relationship with the convicted sex offender.
According to Republic, an anti-monarchy organization, it has instructed lawyers to “consider a private prosecution against Andrew over allegations of sexual assault, corruption and misconduct in public office.”
Thames Valley Police, which serves the area west of London including Windsor, one of the British royal family’s residences, did not respond to NBC News’ request for comment.
At the center of the latest controversy is an email exchange from Nov. 30, 2010, from the latest release of Epstein files by the Justice Department last month.
The email chain, seen by NBC News, appears to show the former prince forwarding to Epstein “visit reports for Vietnam, Singapore, Hong Kong and Shenzhen” in relation to the royal’s recent visit to South East Asia.
The email from Amit Patel, who signed as the special adviser to the then-Duke of York, appeared to contain an attached doc file and was forwarded to Epstein within five minutes of receipt, the documents show. NBC News could not confirm what exactly was in the documents attached titled VR_HONG_KONG_OCT2010_vFINAL.doc; VR_SHENZHEN_OCT2010_vFINAL.doc;VR_SINGAPORE_OCT2010_vFINAL.doc; VR_VIETNAM_OCT2010_vFINAL.doc
Trade envoys are usually barred from sharing sensitive or commercial documents under confidentiality rules.
Queen Elizabeth II’s second son served as the United Kingdom’s special representative for international trade and investment between 2001 and 2011. NBC News reached out to U.K.’s Department for Business & Trade for comment but did not receive a response. He was stripped of his royal titles last year and has become estranged from the royal family over his ties to Epstein.
One of the most prominent survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s sexual abuse, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, had alleged that Epstein trafficked her to his powerful friends, including Andrew, against whom she filed a lawsuit in 2021 alleging that Andrew sexually abused her when she was 17.
Mountbatten-Windsor has denied having had sex with Giuffre and any wrongdoing connected to Epstein. He stepped back from active royal duties in 2019 amid the controversy. He reached a legal settlement with Giuffre for an undisclosed amount in 2022.
Mountbatten-Windsor has always denied any wrongdoing in relation to his affiliation with Epstein. NBC News has reached out to his office for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
Reuters and Jean-Nicholas Fievet contributed.
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