Photo of Andrew lying on laps at Sandringham in new Epstein files

A photo of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor lying on the laps of women is among the thousands of Epstein files which have been released by the US Department of Justice.

In the picture, convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell hovers in the background smiling at the former prince. The photo appears to have been taken in the saloon room at Sandringham, the royal estate in Norfolk.

The emergence of the photo will add to scrutiny on Mr Mountbatten-Windsor, after he was stripped of his remaining titles and honours over his links to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Andrew has always denied any wrongdoing.

Two of the photos also show Andrew’s ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, in the company of women whose faces are covered by black squares.

Ms Ferguson’s representatives declined to comment.

Simply appearing in the photos or documents is not evidence of wrongdoing.

The heavily-redacted tranche of some of the so-called Epstein files – the long-awaited documents relating to the US Department of Justice’s investigations into Epstein – were released on Friday night.

The documents were highly anticipated after Congress passed a law mandating the files be released in their entirety by 19 December.

They contain photos of the interiors of Epstein’s homes, his overseas travels and celebrities including US President Bill Clinton, Mr Mountbatten-Windsor and Michael Jackson. President Donald Trump was hardly mentioned in the files.

Many of those identified in other releases, including President Trump, have denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein.

In the undated picture of Andrew, the former prince – now 65 – looks much younger. He is smiling with his eyes closed.

The faces of those with him, who are sitting in front of a grand fireplace, have been redacted with black squares. The photo appears to be at Sandringham, King Charles’s private estate in Norfolk.

In another picture, he appears to be at Royal Ascot with Epstein and Maxwell.

Also among the files are undated photos of Maxwell standing outside the door of 10 Downing Street.

In the picture she is alone and no context was provided with the photo about why she is there or when the image was taken.

The issue over Andrew’s friendship with Epstein has continued to dog the royals.

The King stripped his younger brother of his prince title following weeks of intense pressure over his links to the paedophile financier.

He is also expected to shortly move out of his Windsor mansion, Royal Lodge.

It came after Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor – as he is now known – gave up his other royal titles, including the Duke of York, after more questions and allegations about his private life.

At the start of this year, emails showed that he had stayed in contact with Epstein for longer than he had previously admitted.

In a posthumous memoir published in October, Virginia Giuffre – a prominent accuser of Epstein – repeated allegations that, as a teenager, she had sex with Andrew on three separate occasions. Andrew has always strenuously denied the claims.

Andrew has also faced calls from Democrat members of the US Congress to give evidence to a committee investigating Epstein’s activities. He had not replied to the request by the end of their deadline last month.

Separately, two photos of Ms Ferguson – then the Duchess of York – have emerged in the document dump.

One shows her standing on a pavement next to an unidentified woman holding a shopping bag. In the other, she is sitting cross legged on a green sofa.

Ms Ferguson has also faced her own Epstein controversy earlier this year, after an email from 2011 revealed she called him her “supreme friend”.

Multiple charities dropped the then-Duchess of York as a patron or ambassador after the emergence of that email, in which she also seemed to apologise for her public criticism of him.

The extensive redactions have been criticised by Democrats for violating the transparency law.

But the White House says the Trump administration is the “most transparent in history”, as the DoJ says it has “erred on the side of redacting to protect victims”. (BBC News)

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