Prince Andrew Out of Royal Family's Good Graces, Could Spend Lifetime in Prison if Convicted

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor faces potentially serious legal consequences due to his associations with the late Jeffrey Epstein. On 19 February, the former Duke of York, who was stripped of his royal titles in October 2025, was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office before being released under investigation. Following his arrest, King Charles III issued a statement saying that 'the law must take its course.'

The arrest centres on allegations that Andrew shared confidential government trade information with Epstein during his time as a UK trade envoy, a charge separate from the longstanding sexual abuse allegations against him. Years earlier, Andrew told the BBC that he had no recollection of ever meeting Virginia Giuffre, who had accused him of sexual assault. Even when an interviewer pointed to a photograph of the two together, he maintained he did not remember the encounter. Newly released Epstein files have since raised further questions about the accuracy of those claims.

A Challenging Case

Attorney James Sexton said that Andrew has not been in the royal family's good graces for many years, for myriad reasons, but that the recent allegations represent the most damaging evidence to date.

'It's certainly something that any attorney looks at and says, "I would not want to try to make a meal out of those ingredients," because it is not a favourable one for him, and it's a good one for the prosecution,' he said.

Sexton added that he was relieved not to be handling Andrew's defence, describing the case as exceptionally challenging. He also said the UK is taking the matter more seriously than the US given Andrew's direct ties to Epstein. Misconduct in public office carries a maximum sentence of life in prison under British law.

Andrew's Post-Arrest Photo Goes Viral

Andrew also drew public attention after photographs taken following his release from police custody spread widely online. The images show him wide-eyed inside a vehicle. One photograph was subsequently placed on display inside the Louvre by UK activists, with a TikTok video of the act drawing hundreds of comments from members of the public.

'Genius! How do you think of something like this?' one person commented.

'Forget Mona Lisa. There's a new icon in town,' another person wrote.

'Would be much funnier in the British museum, but still awesome,' a third person wrote.

'Louvre security still pretty lax, huh?' another person wrote.

Possible Changes to the Line of Succession

Royal fans could expect more changes within the royal family in the coming weeks or months. There are whispers that Andrew could be removed from the line of succession after the police finish their investigation. However, it is important to note that a member of the royal family cannot just be removed from the line of succession. The possible change requires legislation in Parliament.

According to the New York Times, doing so could result in lawmakers questioning the Buckingham Palace, which is something that the royal family doesn't want. So, removing Andrew from the line of succession is not that simple. What happens next will be determined in the coming days.