By Andrew MacAskill, William James and Michael Holden
LONDON, Feb 23 (Reuters) - Former British ambassador to the U.S. Peter Mandelson was arrested by London police on Monday on suspicion of misconduct in public office, following revelations over his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Mandelson, 72, was fired from the most prestigious posting in Britain's diplomatic service in September, when the depth of his friendship with Epstein started to become clear.
Police earlier this month began a criminal investigation into Mandelson after Prime Minister Keir Starmer's government passed on communications between the former ambassador and Epstein.
"Officers have arrested a 72-year-old man on suspicion of misconduct in public office," London's Metropolitan Police said in a statement relating to an investigation into a former government minister.
Mandelson was filmed leaving his central London home accompanied by plainclothes officers wearing body cameras, before being driven away in a car.
The arrest means police suspect a crime has been committed but does not imply any guilt.
There was no immediate response from Mandelson's lawyers.
EMAILS SHOWED MANDELSON AND EPSTEIN CLOSER THAN THOUGHT
Emails between Mandelson and Epstein, released by the U.S. Department of Justice in late January, showed the two men had a closer relationship than had been publicly known, and Mandelson had shared information with the financier when he was a minister in former Prime Minister Gordon Brown's government in 2009.
Mandelson, who this month resigned from Starmer's Labour Party and quit his position in parliament's upper chamber, has previously said he "very deeply" regretted his association with Epstein. But he has not commented publicly or responded to messages seeking comment on the latest revelations.
Mandelson's homes in London and west England were searched by police earlier this month.
"He was arrested at an address in Camden on Monday, 23 February and has been taken to a London police station for interview," the police statement said.
"This follows search warrants at two addresses in the Wiltshire and Camden areas."
Last week, King Charles' younger brother Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was also arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office over separate allegations he sent confidential government documents to Epstein. He has always denied any wrongdoing.
PRESSURE GROWS ON STARMER OVER VETTING BEFORE APPOINTMENT
A conviction for misconduct in a public office carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, and must be handled in a Crown Court, which only deals with the most serious criminal offences.
Mandelson's relationship with Epstein, who died in prison while awaiting trial in 2019 on sex trafficking charges, is at the centre of a British political scandal that has forced the resignation of two senior government officials.
Starmer, who has faced calls to step down over Mandelson's appointment, faces further scrutiny after parliament ordered the release of documents relating to his vetting. A minister said on Monday that the first documents should be published in early March.
MANDELSON HAD A DECADES-LONG CAREER IN UK POLITICS
Mandelson has had a turbulent, decades‑long career in British politics.
He came to prominence in the mid-to-late 1990s as one of the architects of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair's New Labour project.
But Mandelson was forced to resign twice from the cabinet, first in 1998 for failing to disclose a home loan he had taken from a colleague, and second in 2001 after allegations that he had tried to influence a passport application.
But he was reappointed as a minister in Brown's Labour government from 2008 to 2010 and eventually returned to public office when Starmer made him ambassador to the United States in late 2024.
His appointment as ambassador to the United States was initially seen as a shrewd move. He scored an early victory by ensuring Britain was the first country to agree a deal with the United States to lower some of President Donald Trump's tariffs.
But he was fired a few months later when documents showed his close ties to Epstein.
Starmer has said that Mandelson lied about the extent of his ties to Epstein during the vetting process.
(Reporting by William James; editing by Michael Holden and Jon Boyle)
