Former decorated top cop, and Princess Diana’s bodyguard, Ken Wharfe has labeled Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor “toxic” and says the Epstein scandal “is not finished”
Prince Andrew was arrested and released pending investigation on allegations of misconduct in a public office on February 19(Image: UK Press via Getty Images)
Princess Diana’s former bodyguard has branded former prince Andrew as “one of the most arrogant individuals I’ve ever had the misfortune of meeting”.
The disgraced former Duke of York was arrested on February 19, his 66th birthday, at his temporary residence of Wood Farm on the King’s Sandringham estate in Norfolk on suspicion of misconduct in public office.
He was held for 11 hours before being released under investigation by Thames Valley Police. It is claimed he allegedly passed on confidential information to Epstein as part of his role as a trade envoy for Britain. He has not been charged and has previously denied all wrongdoing relating to his association with the late paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
SAS-trained Scotland Yard inspector Ken Wharfe, who served as Diana’s personal protection officer from 1988 to 1993, said: “I did, on a few occasions, have dealings with him in a professional capacity – and I found him to be one of the most arrogant individuals I’ve ever had the misfortune of meeting.”
SAS-trained Scotland Yard inspector Ken Wharfe, served as Diana’s personal protection officer from 1988 to 1993(Image: Mark Large/ANL/REX/Shutterstock)
Speaking on the Suddenly Single podcast on Tuesday, Wharfe made clear he had tried to avoid commenting on the situation for as long as possible.
“Ever since the Epstein crisis that hit the Royal Family, I’ve taken a personal stand on this. The whole issue of the Duke of York, as he was, and now Mountbatten-Windsor, is excruciatingly toxic, and continues to be.”
The King said last month that “the law must take its course” after expressing his “deepest concern” over the arrest, which came after millions of files were released by the US Department of Justice in relation to the Epstein scandal.
“There isn’t a day now, in the last six months, where there hasn’t been a story surrounding the Duke of York, Windsor’s association with Epstein, which has now brought into contact his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson.”
Prince Andrew was arrested on February 19 on allegations of misconduct in a public office(Image: Getty Images)
Emails disclosed from the latest tranche of Epstein files, released by the US State Department, appear to show Ferguson asking Epstein for £20,000 to cover rent in 2009, saying her landlord had threatened to go to the newspapers. Ferguson, who divorced Andrew in 1996 but continued living with him at Royal Lodge until recently, has denied any wrongdoing.
“It’s a subject that, as yet, is not finished,” Wharfe added. “It’s only just begun, and who knows where this might end up?”
Wharfe also suggested the scandal surrounding Andrew would have an effect on King Charles, and the “future outlook for the monarchy”.
“The King himself is going through a very difficult period of life trying to sort out his younger brother’s problems,” he said. “But William and Harry, particularly, were to be part of the King’s future design of the monarchy.
“Unfortunately, he’s lost that third – that Harry third – who I think was an important part of restructuring the monarchy for the future.”
The decorated former cop, who was honoured by the late Queen Elizabeth II with membership of the Victorian Order after leaving his post in 1993 and later retiring from the Metropolitan Police in 2002 after 35 years of service, served at the very heart of the Royal Family during its most turbulent years.
Met Police bodyguard Ken Wharfe spent nearly six years at Princess Diana’s side, becoming a close friend and confidant (Image: Mirrorpix)
From 1986 he was bodyguard to the young Princes William and Harry, with the young princes often referring to him as ‘Uncle Ken’ – before he was appointed Diana’s personal protection officer. He spent nearly six years at her side, becoming a close friend and confidant who, in his own words, shared her “innermost secrets”.
Wharfe suggested that the royal family could have benefited from Prince Harry and his wife Meghan being a central force within the institution, recalling the initial excitement of their marriage in May 2018 that ‘moved and changed the Royal Family forever.’
He said: “He was a prince of the realm, marrying a woman of mixed heritage, an American, a divorcee. She had all the qualities that, had you given that 10, 15 years ago, there would be no chance of that ever happening.
“But it never worked because I think Meghan never really understood it. And I don’t think Harry really anticipated at that time that, in some months later, he’d be disappearing to America, to live a life of exile, almost.
“It looks as though he may well have won a case to restore his security when he comes to the United Kingdom. And in a way, although I was against that initially, I do think that the climate has changed globally, that maybe the government and the Metropolitan Police will actually agree to provide him with some proper security, which is always wanted. And where does that lead him?”
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex left their roles as working royals in March 2020(Image: PA)
However, the former officer added that he believes Harry, despite his life in Montecito, California, with Meghan and their two children, is not truly settled and he could still return to the family.
“I think the fun of those days in Montecito, and the celebrity world that he moved in, has faded and left him somewhat isolated,” he said. “Does he have a role to play in the future of the monarchy? I think he does – quite how he does that, I don’t think he even knows yet.”