Probe into Lord Peter Mandelson and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor last over a year, top prosecutor says

The Director of Public Prosecutions has said the investigations into Lord Peter Mandelson and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor could take more than a year to be completed.

Andrew served as the UK’s special representative for international trade and investment from 2001 to 2011, resigning amid scrutiny over his friendship with convicted pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.

He has denied any wrongdoing regarding his ties to Epstein.

While the former prince’s titles were revoked by the King, Lord Mandelson was also removed from his post as the United Kingdom’s ambassador to the United States.

Both were arrested in February on suspicion of misconduct in public office over their connections to Epstein.

They were later released under investigation.

Speaking about both cases on Thursday afternoon, director of public prosecutions Stephen Parkinson said: “I really don’t think anyone should expect the investigation to conclude prematurely.

“It would not be surprising if it took more than a year, not because of lack of urgency but because of the complexity; also the international dimension is an extra factor to consider; although in some cases you can get the evidence back within an hour, this is not always the case and sometimes formal procedures involving the courts have to be carried out and this can cause significant delays, it is very complex, time consuming, but there is no lack of urgency in this case.”

Mr Parkinson said: “As we have confirmed, we provide early investigation advice and, you know, we have been from a very early stage.”

He added: “The police are responsible for investigations, they do not need to consult us.

“We’re only officially engaged when the entire evidence file is sent to us. At that point, we sort of take control of the case, but in complex cases, and this is one of them, it’s well understood that the police will benefit from the input we can provide, and that happens at the outset.”