Prince Andrew leaves Royal Lodge underneath cowl of darkness after King Charles acts
Prince Andrew has vacated the Royal Lodge and moved to Sandringham after King Charles reportedly asked him to leave early amid fresh Epstein files revelations
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was seen leaving his Royal Lodge home (file)(Image: POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Former prince Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has been spotted departing the Royal Lodge under cover of darkness to begin his exile. The ex-Duke of York is understood to have been ejected earlier than anticipated after his brother King Charles grew increasingly worried about shocking revelations.
Late on Monday Andrew abandoned the £30million, 31-room Royal Lodge three months after surrendering his lease in disgrace. He was transported 132 miles to Sandringham and smuggled into the Norfolk estate in darkness to avoid detection.
The former duke spent yesterday at Wood Farm Cottage where he will remain temporarily. He will relocate permanently next door to Marsh Farm by the start of April, once refurbishments are finished.
A friend of the former royal told the Sun newspaper: “He had planned to cling on at Royal Lodge a little longer but with the latest batch of Epstein files it was made clear to him that it was time to go. Leaving was so humiliating for him that he chose to do it under the cover of darkness.
“He didn’t want to have a big emotional goodbye even though Royal Lodge is a place where he had so many family memories.
“Theoretically he could have stayed until Marsh Farm was ready but the headlines were only getting worse. Also, the fact he’s been seen driving around Windsor laughing and looking like he hasn’t a care in the world hasn’t gone down well with the Royal Household.”
Thames Valley Police has confirmed it is “assessing the information” following reports by the BBC that a second woman has alleged Jeffrey Epstein sent her to the UK for a sexual encounter with Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.
The alleged incident is said to have taken place at the former prince’s home, Royal Lodge, in 2010, with the non-British woman reportedly in her twenties at the time. The woman’s lawyer Brad Edwards had told BBC News: “We’re talking about at least one woman who was sent by Jeffrey Epstein over to Prince Andrew.”
Former royal Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has consistently denied any allegations against him. Thames Valley Police issued a statement saying they were “aware of reports about a woman said to have been taken to an address in Windsor in 2010 for sexual purposes. We are assessing the information in line with our established procedures.”
The force added: “We take any reports of sexual crimes extremely seriously and encourage anyone with information to come forward.
“At this time, these allegations have not been reported to Thames Valley Police by either the lawyer or their client.”
