Britain’s top police officer is pressing the US authorities to share unredacted versions of the Epstein files as the Metropolitan Police investigate claims that Peter Mandelson leaked sensitive information to the late paedophile.
The Met commissioner Sir Mark Rowley is said to have last month asked the US ambassador Warren Stephens for full documents relating to the peer, who was sacked as UK ambassador to the US over his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein.
Sir Mark is expected to push the US authorities further during a visit to Washington this week, according to reports.
Police are investigating the Labour peer on suspicion of misconduct in public office, while Thames Valley Police is leading a separate probe into Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor for the same alleged offence.
Both men were arrested and bailed last month after the US Department of Justice (DoJ) released 3 million documents relating to the late billionaire.
However, some information in the exchanges had been redacted to protect victims and avoid jeopardising ongoing investigations.
The Met has confirmed it is actively seeking further details from law enforcement partners, including in the US.
It is feared that if the American authorities refuse to cooperate, formal requests for the emails will need to be submitted under a legal agreement between the US and the UK.
It could take up to a year to access the documents under the formal process, called a mutual legal assistance (MLA) request, and there is no guarantee the DoJ will release them.
The Met is investigating claims Lord Mandelson passed on market-sensitive information to Epstein during his time as business secretary. The 72-year-old, who was sacked from his post as ambassador to the US last year and resigned from the House of Lords in February, has previously denied any wrongdoing.
Emails from 2009, published in the Epstein files, led to allegations Lord Mandelson had passed on an assessment of potential policy measures by one of then-prime minister Gordon Brown’s advisers.
Police searched two of Lord Mandelson’s properties in connection with their investigation.
In a statement last month, the Met said: “Officers have arrested a 72-year-old man on suspicion of misconduct in public office. He was arrested at an address in Camden on Monday, 23 February and has been taken to a London police station for interview.
“This follows [the execution of] search warrants at two addresses in the Wiltshire and Camden areas.”
Sir Keir Starmer has faced a major backlash over the decision to appoint the Labour grandee to the key diplomatic role despite the latter’s continued friendship with Epstein after he was convicted of soliciting a minor for prostitution in 2008. Morgan McSweeney quit his role as Sir Keir’s chief of staff over the scandal.
The first batch of documents relating to the decision to appoint Lord Mandelson, released last week, revealed the prime minister was warned there was a “general reputational risk” over his friendship with Epstein.
Mr Mountbatten-Windsor is separately being investigated by Thames Valley Police on suspicion of misconduct in public office in his role as a UK trade envoy.
The royal was pictured leaving a police station in Aylsham, Norfolk, on 19 February after he was released under investigation following a day of questioning.
Last week, the first known picture of Mr Mountbatten-Windsor, Epstein and Lord Mandelson together was uncovered.
The men were pictured around a table wearing bathrobes while drinking out of mugs printed with the US flag in a photo believed to have been taken in Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, between 1999 and 2000, according to ITV News.
The US authorities sent an MLA to the Home Office in 2020 requesting Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s assistance as an alleged witness to Epstein’s offending.
