Prince Andrew’s armed protection police are being replaced by private security officers
Prince Andrew’s armed protection police are being replaced by private security officers allowed to only use Tasers – amid claims King Charles may personally pay £3M bodyguard bill
Prince Andrew‘s armed protection police are being replaced by private security officers who are only allowed to use Tasers.
King Charles may now personally pay the £3million a year bill for his brother’s new team of bodyguards, it’s been reported.
It comes a year after The Duke of York, 62, was stripped of his official roles and HRH title after settling a sexual abuse case with accuser Virginia Giuffre.
He made no admission of liability and has consistently and vehemently denied the allegations.
Prince Andrew will no longer be protected by armed police officers, it’s been reported
King Charles may now personally pay the £3million a year bill for his brother’s new team of bodyguards, it is claimed
Buckingham Palace refused to comment to the Sun On Sunday when asked whether Charles would now cover the cost of Andrew’s armed protection using his £24million-a-year income from the Duchy of Lancaster.
The palace decline to comment on all security matters.
As a working royal, Andrew was entitled to a taxpayer funded security detail made up of armed police officers who accompanied him on all visits outside of Windsor, Berkshire.
The prince was said to be ‘furious’ when reports first emerged that he would be stripped of the entitlement.
Former Home Office minister Norman Baker said yesterday: ‘Armed protection has always been a status symbol for the likes of Prince Andrew.
‘Of course he should pay it himself and not burden the taxpayer because he is a private individual and carries out no public duties.’
It follows reports Andrew has finally sold his Swiss ski chalet to a British family for £19million.
Prince Andrew has finally sold his Swiss ski chalet (pictured) to a British family ‘for £19million’, according to reports, after more than a year of legal wrangling over a ‘£1.6million business debt’
The Duke had been trying to sell the seven-bedroom property in Verbier since 2020, as the costs of his sexual abuse civil case began to mount.
Virginia Roberts had accused the late Queen’s son of forcing her to have sex with him on three separate occasions in 2001, when she was 17.
He always denied the claims and a settlement was agreed last year, believed to have been in the region of $12million (£9.8million).
Andrew had hoped to sell Chalet Helora sooner to help cover the costs, but a freezing order was placed on sale to guarantee that a Swiss couple, with whom the Duke struck up a business arrangement, would receive the reported £1.6m he owed them.
However it is believed the order did not block the sale, as a spokeswoman for Andrew told the Telegraph last night: ‘The sale of the Duke and Duchess of York’s Swiss chalet has now gone through.’
The legal issue surrounding the £1.6m debt is reportedly ongoing and the disputed amount will be withheld until the matter is resolved.
Prince Andrew on a skiing holiday in Verbier, Switzerland in 2007
The chalet comes with an indoor swimming pool, sauna, sun terrace, bar and opulent entertainment area.
In June, Andrew was branded an ‘absolute fool’ by the French socialite who sold him the property in 2014.
The disgraced royal had previously owed Isabelle de Rouvre more than £6million for the chalet until last year.
Miss de Rouvre said she pitied the couple who had a debt with the prince, knowing the stress she had experienced trying to recoup the money owed to her.
She said: ‘It was a horrible experience. I do not understand how he operates and I feel very sorry for people who are involved with him in business.’
The long-running battle with Miss de Rouvre over the £6.6million debt was only resolved last year.
Sources in June confirmed that removal vans from the UK were at the Verbier property were removing items on behalf of the duke
She said: ‘It’s really rather unbelievable. He caused me such stress and now it’s claimed other people are owed money too.
‘They [Andrew and Sarah] are so crazy. He [Andrew] is an absolute fool and I just cannot understand how he goes about his life.’
Miss de Rouvre had been forced into a legal battle two years ago to recoup the vast sum.
She had sold Chalet Helora to her then-friends Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson in 2014 for £18million. But they failed to pay a cash amount of £5million.
She agreed it could be deferred until December 2019, with interest accruing, but later accused the pair of failing to honour the agreement.
Removal vans from a UK firm given a Royal Warrant by the Queen in 1981 were spotted at the property in June, with the chalet rumoured to have been sold months prior.
Sources at the time confirmed they were removing items on behalf of the duke.