Andrew latest: Mountbatten-Windsor released under investigation after 11 hours of questioning | UK News

By Rhiannon Mills, royal correspondent 

The unmarked police cars were seen on the Sandringham estate, with no advance warning for the King or the wider palace that his brother was going to be arrested.

It was only later that Thames Valley police released their statement, confirming they were questioning a man in his 60s and searching properties in Norfolk and Berkshire.

Pictures of police on both the Sandringham and Windsor estates, not protecting members of the Royal Family but searching for evidence, once a completely unimaginable sight, now the Royal Family’s worst nightmare playing out to a global audience.

But everything about this is unprecedented. Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the first senior royal in modern history to be arrested, has been questioned on suspicion of misconduct in public office.

The speed of the statement from the King, and to be honest, getting any public response at all, was also unexpected. But it was much needed when this is particularly painful for the Royal Family, going to the very heart of their public service.

Watch: King asked about arrest

Again, the King appeared to try to distance the wider Royal Family from Andrew, again reiterating they were open to cooperating with any investigations, and again emphasising that this would not derail the wider family from their work.

It’s why we saw both the King and Queen out on separate engagements, aware that questions would be thrown their way. And that future questions may come about what may have been known and not previously probed or shared with the authorities in relation to Andrew and his links to Epstein. Yes, while Andrew may have been arrested, there is jeopardy for the wider monarchy and the questions this investigation may raise.

I have come to learn over the years that this is not an institution known to be particularly reactive, or one that will be forced into saying anything, but in this case, they knew there was no alternative but to respond.

They are conscious that this arrest, whatever the outcome, does raise serious questions about trust and the wider public role of the monarchy. Despite what must be a personally painful moment for him, this is, after all, a family crisis too. The monarch knows his public responsibilities firmly now lie in maintaining the credibility of an institution he now leads.

The King and the palace are just hoping his statement shows they are not ignoring the enormity of it all and are open to a level of scrutiny we’ve never seen before.