Police Scotland confirmed Friday that it has opened a formal inquiry into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein's visits to Balmoral Castle, the royal family's 50,000-acre Highland estate, dragging the Epstein scandal into Scottish jurisdiction for the first time and adding a new front to the mounting legal troubles facing Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the former prince stripped of his royal titles earlier this year.

A force spokesperson said the investigation is still in its infancy. "We have received information and active inquiries are ongoing but these are at a very early stage," the spokesperson said, declining to detail what triggered the probe or what, specifically, officers are investigating.

The inquiry centers on claims — first reported by the Daily Express and unconfirmed by police — that Andrew invited Epstein to Balmoral and that women were trafficked to the estate during his visits there. Photographs released by the U.S. Department of Justice as part of its Epstein files disclosures show Epstein and his former associate Ghislaine Maxwell photographed at the estate over the years, according to NBC News.

A scandal with no end in sight

The Balmoral inquiry is separate from — but adds to — an active Thames Valley Police investigation into Andrew that began with his arrest in February on suspicion of misconduct in public office, tied to allegations he shared confidential briefing material with Epstein 16 years ago. He was released without charge and remains under investigation. Police have since interviewed members of the family of Virginia Giuffre, the Epstein accuser who died by suicide in 2025 after accusing Andrew of sexual abuse beginning when she was 17.

"WE HAVE RECEIVED INFORMATION AND ACTIVE INQUIRIES ARE ONGOING BUT THESE ARE AT A VERY EARLY STAGE."

Thames Valley detectives are also examining an alleged 2002 encounter between Andrew and a woman at Royal Ascot, and Police Scotland had previously sought information about a 2006 private flight into Edinburgh that Andrew, Epstein and Maxwell were all said to have taken.

Andrew, who lost the "Prince" style and all military and royal patronages this year amid the fallout, has never been criminally charged in connection with Epstein and has consistently and strenuously denied any wrongdoing. He has separately gone to court seeking to quash the search warrants used in his February arrest.

Buckingham Palace did not immediately respond to the new inquiry. Police Scotland said it would not confirm further details of an ongoing investigation while it remains in its early stages.