Police Scotland Confirms Early-Stage Inquiries Into Andrew's Time at Balmoral
Police Scotland says it has active inquiries under way into the time former Prince Andrew spent at Balmoral, the royal family's private estate in the Scottish Highlands, with the American financier Jeffrey Epstein. The force said the inquiries are "at a very early stage." The news came on Friday, October 30, 2026.
Andrew, who no longer uses the title Prince and is now known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, has not been charged with any offence in connection with the inquiries. Epstein died in a New York jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. His former associate Ghislaine Maxwell was convicted in 2021 in a federal case in New York.
In a statement, Police Scotland said it had received information and that all of its inquiries are "evidence-led," with the needs of victim survivors at the heart of the work. It did not name any individual or say what the information contained.
The BBC reported that the force is looking into the activities of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, Epstein and Maxwell. The Daily Express reported as a world exclusive that the probe concerns claims that women were trafficked at Balmoral. The Express said that was its understanding, and the claim has not been confirmed by police.
The inquiry has a history. In February, Police Scotland made a public appeal for information after the release of the Epstein files, a large set of documents about Epstein's dealings. That release included material about Epstein's use of Edinburgh airport, which is in Scotland's capital.
Balmoral has its own place in the story. A photograph of Epstein and Maxwell at a cabin on the Balmoral Estate, thought to date from 1999, was shown at Maxwell's trial in New York. The picture was not presented as evidence of any crime.
For readers in the United States, the probe is a Scottish police matter, not a US one. It still runs through the same names that have drawn attention in New York for years. Police Scotland has not given a timeline for its work. Its statement on the early stage of the inquiries is the latest official word on the case.
