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

The photo of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor lying on the women’s lap is among the thousands of Epstein files released by the US Department of Justice.

In the picture, convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell stands in the background smiling at the former prince. The photo is understood to have been taken in the parlor room at Sandringham, the royal estate in Norfolk.

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

Andrew has always denied any wrongdoing.

In two of the photos, Andrew’s ex-wife Sarah Ferguson is also seen with women whose faces are covered with black squares.

BBC News has approached Ms Ferguson’s representatives for comment.

Merely appearing in photographs or documents is not proof of a crime.

Heavily edited portions of some of the so-called Epstein files, long-awaited documents related to the U.S. Justice Department’s investigations into Epstein, were released Friday night.

The documents were awaited with great curiosity after Congress passed a law requiring the full release of the files by December 19.

They include photographs of the interiors of Epstein’s homes, his foreign travels and celebrities including US President Bill Clinton, Mr Mountbatten-Windsor and Michael Jackson. President Donald Trump was barely mentioned in the files.

Many of those named in other statements, including President Trump, have denied any wrongdoing regarding Epstein.

In Andrew’s undated photo, the former prince, now 65, looks much younger. He is smiling with his eyes closed.

Sitting in front of a large fireplace, the faces of the women were rearranged with black squares. The photo appears at Sandringham, King Charles’ private estate in Norfolk.

Another picture shows her at Royal Ascot with Epstein and Maxwell.

The files also include undated photographs of Maxwell standing outside the door of 10 Downing Street.

He is alone in the photo and there is no context given in the photo as to why he is there or when the photo was taken.

The issue surrounding Andrew’s friendship with Epstein continues to haunt the royal family.

The king stripped his younger brother of the title of prince after weeks of intense pressure over his links to the pedophile financier.

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

This statement comes after Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor (as he is now known) gave up his other royal titles, including Duke of York, following further questions and allegations about his private life.

At the beginning of this year, emails showed he remained in contact with Epstein longer than he had previously admitted.

Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein’s leading accusers, repeated allegations in a memoir published posthumously in October that she had sex with Andrew on three separate occasions when she was a teenager. Andrew has always vehemently denied the allegations.

Andrew has also faced calls from Democratic members of the US Congress to provide evidence to a committee investigating Epstein’s activities. It did not respond to the request by the end of the deadline last month.

Separately, two photographs of Mrs Ferguson (then Duchess of York) emerged in the document dump.

In one of the photos, we see him standing on the sidewalk next to an unidentified woman holding a shopping bag. In the other, he sits cross-legged on a green couch.

Ms Ferguson also faced her own Epstein controversy Earlier this year, after it was revealed that a 2011 email called her her “best friend”.

After that email emerged, many charities removed the then-Duchess of York as patron or ambassador; In that email, he also appeared to apologize for his public criticism of her.

The sweeping redactions were criticized by Democrats as violating the transparency law.

However, while the White House said the Trump administration was the “most transparent administration in history,” the Justice Department said it “made a mistake in not regulating to protect victims.”