At the center of a scandal in the United Kingdom after the publication of new documents on his links with Jeffrey Epstein, the former British minister and ambassador Peter Mandelson was arrested on Monday and then released on bail by the London police. He is suspected of having transmitted sensitive information to the American financier and child criminal.
Published on: 02/23/2026 - 6:21 p.m. Modified on: 02/24/2026 - 04:58
Former British minister and ambassador Peter Mandelson was released on bail after his arrest on Monday February 23 as part of an investigation into suspicions of the transfer of sensitive information to the American financier and child criminal Jeffrey Epstein.
Peter Mandelson, a central figure in British politics and former UK ambassador to Washington, was arrested around 5 p.m. GMT on Monday on suspicion of breaches of duty in public office, following allegations linked to the latest round of documents associated with Epstein.
“A 72-year-old man, arrested on suspicion of professional misconduct in the exercise of his public functions, has been released on bail pending the continuation of the investigation,” said the police in a press release published early Tuesday morning, the Press Association agency specifying that it is Lord Mandelson.
To (re)readWhat we know about the Epstein-Mandelson links, which are affecting the British establishment
The BBC and Sky News had shown footage of Peter Mandelson leaving his home in central London, accompanied by a man and a woman who escorted him to an unmarked car.
The weakened Labor government
This arrest of the man who was a Labor figure comes four days after the arrest, on Thursday, of ex-Prince Andrew, the other major British suspect implicated in the Epstein affair.
The brother of King Charles III is also suspected of having transmitted information to the American pedophile, when he was special representative of the United Kingdom for Trade, from 2001 to 2011. He was released after spending several hours in police custody on Thursday.
To (re)readArrest of ex-Prince Andrew: the epilogue of a long and sordid soap opera?
The London police indicated on February 3 that they had opened an investigation against Peter Mandelson, after documents from the Epstein files, made public at the end of January by the American Department of Justice, suggested that he would have transmitted information likely to influence the markets to the American financier, notably when he was a minister in the Labor government of Gordon Brown, from 2008 to 2010.
Three days later, police announced they would search two of Mandelson's residences, in the borough of Camden, London, and in Wiltshire (southwest of England).
These developments have weakened the Labor government of Keir Starmer, accused of having appointed Peter Mandelson ambassador to Washington at the end of 2024, even though he knew that the ex-minister and ex-European commissioner had remained close to Jeffrey Epstein after his conviction for sex crimes.
Keir Starmer, who had already recalled Peter Mandelson last September, has since apologized, notably to the victims of Jeffrey Epstein, and both his chief of staff and his director of communications have resigned.
The government has since committed to publishing all documents relating to the appointment and dismissal of Peter Mandelson. A first tranche should be published at the beginning of March, a member of the government said on Monday.
Also read: Epstein affair: what we know about the disturbing attempts at rapprochement with the Kremlin
With AFP
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