King will not pay for Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s legal fight with police

King Charles will not pay for Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s legal fight with police, as Buckingham Palace draws a line between it and the former Duke of York.

The monarch has made it clear the private funding he gives to his younger brother should not be used to fund the High Court claim, The Telegraph UK reports.

The former prince, who was stripped of his royal titles in October last year, launched legal action against Thames Valley Police on Monday over the circumstances of his arrest on suspicion of misconduct in public office.

Andrew was arrested on February 19 − his 66th birthday − at his home on the king’s private Sandringham estate in Norfolk following allegations he shared sensitive information with Jeffrey Epstein during his time as the UK’s trade envoy.

His legal claim concerns the actions of officers when executing the search warrant and lawyers are seeking to establish whether the warrants were lawful.

The force has applied to keep the details of the legal claim secret and a private High Court hearing will take place on Thursday afternoon at London’s High Court.

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It is unclear whether Andrew will attend the hearing.

A source from Buckingham Palace said King Charles had no involvement in the judicial review application, The Telegraph UK reports.

It had been “made clear” to Andrew that the money he receives from the monarch should not be used to fund the High Court claim.

Andrew receives an annual six-figure provision from King Charles via the monarch’s private funds, which includes an allowance made for the cost of private security.

When he was arrested in February, the palace made clear that the taxpayer would not foot his legal bill.

Andrew was questioned for almost 12 hours at Aylsham Police Station before eventually being released under investigation.

No charges have been laid and Andrew has denied any wrongdoing.

Police spent six days searching his then-home at Sandringham, Wood Farm, and his former residence, Royal Lodge, in Windsor.

The Telegraph earlier reported that the former duke had applied for a judicial review to quash the search warrants issued by an Old Bailey judge on February 18 – the day before his arrest. 

Supporters of Andrew believe his arrest at his home, on his birthday, was done to cause maximum humiliation, rather than invite him to his local police station, the publication reports.

Late last year, Andrew was formally removed of his dukedom and royal titles by the king following his past friendship with Epstein. He and his former wife Sarah Ferguson were evicted from Royal Lodge in Windsor and in February, Andrew moved to Sandringham.

The police investigation began following the release of court documents suggesting Andrew shared sensitive information with Epstein during his time as Britain’s special envoy for international trade and investment between 2001 and 2011.

He is alleged to have forwarded official reports to Epstein regarding visits to Singapore, Vietnam, Hong Kong and China, along with a confidential briefing note that detailed investment opportunities in Afghanistan.

In May, the UK government released files related to Andrew’s time as a UK trade envoy following the release of millions of documents published by the US Department of Justice.

Since his fall from grace, Andrew has lived the life of a recluse at Sandringham and on May 6, he was allegedly confronted by a stalker wearing a face mask who chased him near his home while he was walking his dogs.

The former prince was last seen with the king and rest of the royal family in London on September 16 last year at the Duchess of Kent’s funeral.