LONDON: London’s Metropolitan Police said on Saturday they will not open a criminal investigation into allegations that Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, brother of King Charles III, asked his taxpayer-funded bodyguard to investigate his accuser, Virginia Giuffre, concluding that there was no evidence of criminal conduct.
In a historic decision, Charles in October stripped the former Prince Andrew, 65, of his titles over his involvement in the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.
The claim that he asked an officer in 2011 to dig up dirt on Giuffre, his main accuser, for a smear campaign against her appeared in her posthumous memoir published in October.
Senior Met officer Ella Marriott said an assessment had not revealed any “evidence of criminal acts or misconduct” and the force would be taking “no further action”.
Giuffre’s family said they felt let down by the decision.
“We are deeply disappointed that the Metropolitan Police have dropped their investigation into Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor without explanation and without speaking with us, Virginia’s family,” they said in a statement.
“We continue to challenge the system that protects abusers, especially as more evidence comes to light that can hold people accountable,” they added.
Mountbatten-Windsor could still face other allegations linked to the ongoing unsealing of court documents in the US.
“Should new and relevant information be brought to our attention, including any information resulting from the release of material in the US, we will assess it,” the Met’s Marriott added.
The king’s move to axe his younger brother’s title of prince and oust him from his palatial home on the royal family’s Windsor estate was Andrew’s latest humiliation over his links to convicted US sex offender Epstein.
It came after Giuffre’s memoir reiterated in shocking detail allegations she was trafficked to have sex with Andrew three times, including twice when she was 17, sparking a renewed public outcry.
Giuffre, a US and Australian citizen, took her own life in April, aged 41.
