Former Prince Andrew's Birthday Arrest Sends The Royals Scrambling To Save Face

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has been arrested — on his 66th birthday, no less — and it has the royal household and pundits in quite the tizzy. Andrew's association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein is no secret, and since the Trump administration's Department of Justice has released over 3 million pages of the notorious Epstein files, which included photographs of the former prince with young women and correspondence between him and Epstein, many wondered whether there would be any repercussions for the royal. As it turns out, U.K. authorities aren't turning a blind eye. Andrew was arrested on February 19, 2026, for suspicion of misconduct in public office — he allegedly shared confidential trade documents with Epstein. The royal household, which has mostly remained mum on Andrew's antics, is now desperately trying to save face.

King Charles III previously proved that he's done shielding Andrew, and the monarch has released a statement in the aftermath of his brother's arrest. Instead of defending Andrew or peddling the innocent-until-proven-guilty rhetoric, Charles said he supports the police investigation. "In this, as I have said before, they have our full and wholehearted support and co-operation," the king penned, per X. "Let me state clearly: the law must take its course." It's not exactly a glowing endorsement for Andrew's innocence. As of this writing, Prince William and Princess Catherine are yet to release a statement of their own, but according to the Daily Mail, they share the king's stance on the matter.

Meanwhile, Charles has gone about his royal business like nothing happened. He was seen at St. James's Palace, where he met with various ambassadors. Camilla, Queen Consort, has also been seen going about business as usual, attending a royal engagement at Sinfonia Square Hall in London. The royals were reportedly not told about Andrew's arrest in advance.

King Charles III might have said his piece, but everyone is waiting with bated breath to see what the future king has to say on the matter. Prince William will inherit the Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor headache, whether he likes it or not. There have been indications that the heir apparent is attempting to distance himself from his disgraced uncle. Word has it that the two don't get along and that William's disdain for Andrew all ties back to his wife, Kate Middleton (Andrew reportedly didn't have good things to say about Princess Catherine when she first joined the royal ranks). Then there are also the reports that William went low to get Andrew and Sarah Ferguson out of the Royal Lodge in 2025.

While both William and Catherine had mostly remained quiet about the damaging accusations against Andrew, they did release their first statement on the matter in early February 2026 after the Epstein files were released. It was, however, done through their spokesperson, who told the BBC, "I can confirm The Prince and Princess have been deeply concerned by the continuing revelations. Their thoughts remain focused on the victims." A personal statement from the couple would arguably have packed a bigger punch.

A few days after the statement's release, William was visiting Saudi Arabia, and a journalist asked him, "Sir, to what extent do you think the royal family has done enough around the Andrew and Epstein issue?" per GB News. William, astonishingly, didn't answer, though there is a possibility that he might not have heard the question. The reporter did, however, repeat himself. William simply continued speaking to the woman who was walking alongside him. One hopes he won't have the same approach to Andrew's arrest.