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The
former Prince Andrew, under arrest for suspected misconduct in public
office.
BBC NEWS - 20 February 2026 - WHY MISCONDUCT IN A PUBLIC OFFICE IS SO COMPLICATED AND DIFFICULT TO PROSECUTE
If anyone thought that Andrew
Mountbatten-Windsor would be leaving a police cell and going to court, they were seriously wrong.
That's because he is now under investigation for misconduct in public
office. The offence, essentially an allegation of corruption, is one of the most difficult crimes to investigate, charge, prosecute and convict.
We do not know what Thames Valley Police put to Andrew during the 11 hours he was under arrest, but highly involved legal questions over whether an offence may have been committed will be at the heart of the investigation.
Detectives will be going through a four-step process, assessing which actions, if any, by the former prince amounted to misconduct in public office.
First, was the suspect a public officer?
Second, did they wilfully neglect to perform their duty and/or wilfully misconduct
themselves?
Third, was that neglect or misconduct so bad that it amounted to "an abuse of the public's trust" in the office holder?
Finally, did the office holder act without a reasonable excuse or justification?
Peter Stringfellow of Brett Wilson, a firm that works on complex criminal cases, says that a case last year underlined the challenges that any investigation into alleged misconduct faces.
In that prosecution, a man who worked in the Metropolitan Police pound was accused of taking pictures of human remains found in a crashed vehicle.
A judge concluded the man had not committed misconduct in a public office because the man was not a public officer carrying out a role involving public trust.
"Even though [the defendant] worked for the police, he did a very menial job," Stringfellow says.
"The judge had to look at what position the defendant held and what duties were attached to that position.
"Did those duties amount to a responsibility of government, in which the public has a significant interest beyond those directly affected?"
The allegations being levelled in public at the former prince concern claims that he passed confidential documents to Jeffrey Epstein - while working as a trade envoy.
Detectives may now be looking in close detail at what precisely that role involved and line by line and the nature of the information he passed to the sex offender.
"A public office is primarily defined by its functions, not its status," Stringfellow says. "It does not need to be an 'office' in any technical sense or be a permanent position.
"The position does not need to be subject to specific rules of appointment, and does not need to be directly linked, by way of appointment, employment or contract, in terms of status, to either the Government or the 'state'."
This level of complexity means that if someone is convicted, each case is sentenced differently, even though in theory the maximum is life imprisonment.
"The problem that you have with this type of offence is it's incredibly wide - it covers all manner of public offices," Stringfellow adds.
"It equally would cover all manner of offences. Some of them could be deemed much more serious than others. Sentences will be incredibly varied."
AN ACCIDENT HISTORY
The reason why this offence is so complicated is an accident of history - and the Law Commission, the body that advises government on big legal changes, called five years ago for the offence to be completely reworked.
Misconduct in Public Office is part of England's "common law" - which means judges came up with it hundreds of years ago, rather than Parliament.
Back in the 13th Century, there was a law that said local sheriffs should not receive "for favour borne to such misdoers".
That developed along with other ideas about corruption - arriving at a turning point in 1783.
That year, Lord Mansfield, one of the most celebrated chief justices in English legal history, reviewed the conviction of Charles Bembridge, a government accountant, who was accused of knowingly cooking the books.
The defendant had appealed, saying he had committed no identifiable crime. But the judge said Bembridge had a public role and had failed to carry out his duties on behalf of the King for a corrupting motive.
That, he said, was a crime.
The rules in force today - the four tests being followed by detectives - were set out in an important Court of Appeal judgment in 2003. In the centuries between the Mansfield ruling and that, the offence was sparingly used - maybe as few as 72 times, according to the Law Commission's research.
That meant the crime was little understood by the lawyers and courts dealing with it - and that led to a very modern controversy.
From 2011 the offence was used to pursue journalists and the public officials they were said to have paid for stories in the wake of the closure of the News of the World.
The then Lord Chief Justice eventually stopped the pursuit of some journalists , saying they were being unjustly treated like criminal conspirators, concluding the law was ancient and difficult.
As a result, only 34 of the 90 people arrested in relation to payments from newspapers to officials were ultimately found guilty.
That led the Law Commission to propose a complete rewrite to make sure the offence was only used when appropriate. It suggested that Parliament should make clear that misconduct must include proof that someone has used their position to improperly benefit from their action.
The last government did not act on that 2020 recommendation, but Sir Keir
Starmer's government is now, coincidentally, putting that plan through
Parliament.
Assuming the law passes, the ancient offence will be confined to history, and the investigation into the
King's brother may be the last chapter in a very messy and contested legal saga.
POLITICO 19 FEB 2026 UK POLICE ARREST FORMER PRINCE ANDREW AMID EPSTEIN FALLOUT
Thames Valley Police say they have “released under investigation” a man arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office.
By Noah Keate
LONDON — British royal Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew, was arrested Thursday on suspicion of misconduct in public office.
The former prince has faced multiple allegations over his links to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, including claims that he passed confidential documents to Epstein while he was serving as a British trade envoy between 2001 and 2011. He has strenuously and repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.
“As part of the investigation, we have today (19/2) arrested a man in his sixties from Norfolk on suspicion of misconduct in public office and are carrying out searches at addresses in Berkshire and Norfolk,” Thames Valley Police said in a statement Thursday morning.
An updated statement from the same police force Thursday evening said: “The arrested man has now been released under investigation. We can also confirm that our searches in Norfolk have now concluded.”
British police do not routinely name those arrested as part of an investigation before any criminal charge is brought. Mountbatten-Windsor has not been charged with an offense.
The arrest prompted a rare statement from Mountbatten-Windsor’s brother, King Charles III, who said via his office that he backed the police investigation.
“I have learned with the deepest concern the news about Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and suspicion of misconduct in public office,” he said.
“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. In this, as I have said before, they have our full and wholehearted support and co-operation,” the king said.
“Let me state clearly: the law must take its course,” he added.
The British monarch said: “As this process continues, it would not be right for me to comment further on this matter. Meanwhile, my family and I will continue in our duty and service to you all.”
Thames Valley Police Assistant Chief Constable Oliver Wright said in a statement: “We understand the significant public interest in this case and we will provide updates at the appropriate time.
“Following a thorough assessment, we have now opened an investigation into this allegation of misconduct in public office.
“It is important that we protect the integrity and objectivity of our investigation as we work with our partners to investigate this alleged offence.”
Speaking before the arrest was confirmed, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer was pressed on Mountbatten-Windsor’s case and told the BBC “nobody is above the law.”
The prime minister has repeatedly urged the royal, who was stripped of his prince title by Charles last year, to testify before the U.S. Congress as it investigates the Epstein scandal.
In 2019, Mountbatten-Windsor was accused in a civil lawsuit of sexually assaulting
Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein’s accusers, but he denied all allegations.
Starmer stressed “anybody who’s got relevant information should come forward to whatever the relevant body is.” But he would not be drawn on whether the police should be involved as “they will conduct their own investigations.”
It
appears from the latest moves by the King, that he may not be either fit
enough, or have the spare mental capacity to deal with a complex range
of legal matters. Whereas, his mother, Queen Elizabeth is known to have dealt
with numerous complex matters herself, although shying away from helping
to resolve corruption at Wealden District
Council. Hence, even she was
thought to have been lacking when it came to issues that showed the
State to be wanting.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte apologized Monday 18 December 2022, on behalf of his government for the Netherlands’ historical role in slavery and the slave trade, despite calls for him to delay the long-awaited statement.
“Today I apologize,” Rutte said in a 20-minute speech that was greeted with silence by an invited audience at the National Archive.
Rutte went ahead with the apology even though some activist groups in the Netherlands and its former colonies had urged him to wait until July 1 of next year, the anniversary of the abolition of slavery 160 years ago. Activists consider next year the 150th anniversary because many enslaved people were forced to continue working in plantations for a decade after abolition.
He said the government would establish a fund for initiatives to help tackle the legacy of slavery in the Netherlands and its former colonies.
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