The London Metropolitan Police arrested former British ambassador to the United States, Peter Mandelson, on Monday on suspicion of misconduct in the exercise of a public office, following the dissemination of documents revealing the scope of his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.
The police statement reported that “officers have arrested a 72-year-old man on suspicion of breaches in the exercise of public function”, following searches of his homes in Camden and Wiltshire and the dissemination of images showing Mandelson leaving his residence escorted by officers.
The investigation was launched after the United States Department of Justice published nearly three million files related to the Epstein case at the end of January, within which appeared emails and bank transfers between the former minister and the deceased financier. The documentation indicates that, between 2003 and 2004, Mandelson received at least three payments of USD 25,000 (more than 21,000 euros each) from Epstein’s accounts at JP Morgan, a period in which the former official was a member of the British Parliament.
You may be interested in: Jeffrey Epstein’s former butler tried to sell his “black book” in 2009
The files indicate that Mandelson, who was
a minister in Gordon Brown’s government and European Commissioner for Trade, allegedly shared
sensitive information with Epstein about the
500 billion euro bailout that the Eurozone planned to approve in 2010 and about fiscal and privatization proposals designed to respond to the financial crisis. One of the emails shows that Mandelson sent Epstein an internal note from Brown’s office on tax incentives and the sale of public assets, with the comment: “Interesting note that has reached the Prime Minister”. In another message dated May 2010, Mandelson anticipated to Epstein Brown’s imminent resignation as Labour leader and Prime Minister, writing: “
I finally got him to leave today…”.
The extent of the friendship between Mandelson and Epstein did not come to light until last September, when a journalistic investigation revealed that the then-ambassador maintained contact with Epstein after the financier’s conviction in 2008 for sexual offenses against minors. The publication of this background precipitated Mandelson’s dismissal and the initiation of a criminal investigation, which does not include charges of sexual offenses but rather for alleged disclosure of confidential government information and possible misuse of his position.
In response to the revelations, Mandelson resigned from his seat in the House of Lords and his membership in the Labour Party. He has not issued public statements nor responded to media requests for comment following his arrest. A lawyer for Mandelson declined to comment.
The case exacerbates the political crisis surrounding Prime Minister
Keir Starmer, who appointed Mandelson as ambassador to Washington at the end of 2024, despite the existence of a history of his connection with Epstein. Following the publication of new evidence, the chief of staff,
the head of communications and the cabinet secretary resigned, while several Labour MPs have demanded Starmer’s resignation. The Prime Minister himself acknowledged in the House of Commons that Mandelson’s relationship with Epstein had been mentioned in the selection process for the diplomatic post.
The Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament is currently reviewing documents related to Mandelson’s appointment, although the full files remain unpublished at the request of the police so as not to interfere with the investigation.
The detention of Mandelson comes a few days after Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, younger brother of King Charles, was arrested in a similar case for allegedly sending confidential documents to Epstein. Mountbatten-Windsor has denied any wrongdoing and was released after eleven hours in custody, while the police investigation is ongoing.
