LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Britain’s typically pro-royal public welcomed the arrest Thursday of the former prince Andrew, whose friendship with convicted United States (US) sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has turned him into an outcast.

Some appeared delighted that police were holding King Charles III’s brother, arguing it sent the right message that the royal family is not above the law.

Following years of accusations stemming from Andrew’s Epstein links, the schadenfreude on the British streets was illustrated by lawyer Emma Carter.

The 55-year-old from Essex, east of London, argued the disgraced royal had been “hiding behind his privileges and the popularity of the queen for too many years”, referring to his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II.

“He should have been arrested a long time ago, quite frankly,” she told AFP.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, as he is now known, was detained earlier Thursday on suspicion of misconduct while acting as a United Kingdom (UK) trade envoy.

Police also searched two properties, following revelations in newly released US documents that he apparently shared potentially confidential reports with Epstein.

Maggie Yeo, 59, also welcomed the news with a smile.

“I thought they [the royal family] were untouchable. It is good to know they are not beyond justice,” she told AFP. “At least British justice is working.”

Yeo said she felt sorry for Charles, who has insisted police must be allowed to carry out their investigation. “He is suffering from cancer.”

Sentiment in Yorkshire, northern England, appeared more measured, with several people urging patience.

“Lots of people have got opinions, but until something is proven in court, it’s not fair to judge,” managing director Andrew Hurst, 58, told AFP in the Yorkshire Dales market town of Leyburn.

Back in the capital, Jennifer Tiso, a 39-year-old data analyst, welcomed the message sent by the arrest.

“I don’t think that just because you are related to the royal family, you should be above the law or have a different treatment from regular people,” Tiso said.

“I think it’s time. It’s happened before with rock stars, superstars, and now it’s getting to places of higher power, like the royal family.”

Andrew has always denied any wrongdoing. In 2022, he agreed to pay a multimillion-pound sum to settle a claim by Virginia Giuffre, who accused him of abusing her, without admitting any liability.

Many British people seemed to think the royal family was untouchable.

A YouGov institute opinion poll released Monday had found that 62 per cent of respondents believed it unlikely that Andrew would be charged.

Andrew’s notoriety following years of reports of his partying with Epstein was borne out in public reactions.

Kevin, a 66-year-old pensioner from the southern city of Salisbury, who only gave his first name, said Elizabeth II’s middle son Andrew was “not clever” and “arrogant”.

“I am not against the royal family, but he doesn’t give the right example. He was the Queen’s favourite. She liked to protect him.”

The arrest was important, he said, as the case “involves business, contracts, money, relations with foreign states”.

Andrew’s arrest at his new home on the king’s Sandringham estate as he marked his 66th birthday, concerned his role as a trade envoy between 2001 and 2011.

Various UK police forces have said they are “assessing” claims stemming from the latest release of Epstein files that could link Andrew to other alleged crimes.

Yorkshire retiree Lisa Cockthorn, 56, called it “disappointing for the royal family”.

“They have quite a lot to worry about with issues themselves, other than Andrew,” she said.

“We still don’t know everything about it. It can be quite hard for him, Andrew, to say that he’s innocent and try and prove it. But we don’t know.”

The former prince was held for hours in an unprecedented move against the monarchy in modern British history.

King Charles III, who has promised police the full support of Buckingham Palace, swiftly issued a rare personally signed statement insisting “the law must take its course”.

It was a humiliating new blow for Andrew who was last year stripped of his titles, and ousted from his Windsor residence of more than two decades.

Thames Valley Police said in a statement late Thursday that “the arrested man has now been released under investigation”.

A photograph published by media showed Andrew slumped in the back of a car, staring wild-eyed ahead.

While the earlier police searches in Norfolk “have now concluded”, they were still searching a property in Berkshire, police added. It is believed that is Andrew’s former residence, Royal Lodge.

“It’s a hugely significant moment for the British monarchy, and indeed the nation,” royal expert Ed Owens told AFP.

“We are witnessing a monarchy, I think, shaken by recent events.”

In the sleepy village of Sandringham near the royal estate, an off-duty police officer said he was “very satisfied some formal action was taken”.

“It shows that we are taking steps… I think it’s very reassuring to the members of the public,” the officer, who did not want to be named, told AFP.

In an apparent bid to project an air of business-as-usual, Charles carried out several public duties Thursday, including opening London Fashion Week.

In the Norfolk village of Dersingham, local pub owner John Higginson said he hoped the issue would be “resolved”.

“I just feel sorry, to be quite honest, for people like William and Kate,” he added, referring to the heir-to-the-throne and his wife.

Royal commentator Katie Nicholl told Sky News: “Let’s make no bones about it. This is a moment of crisis for the monarchy, possibly the greatest crisis since the (1936) abdication. No one quite knows how this is going to pan out.”

The scandal has been gathering pace since one of Epstein’s accusers, Virginia Giuffre, last year claimed in her posthumous memoirs that she had been trafficked three times to have sex with Andrew when she was a teenager.

The Giuffre family welcomed Andrew’s arrest Thursday, saying: “Our broken hearts have been lifted at the news,” adding that he was “never a prince”.

The ex-prince served as a British trade envoy for a decade from 2001.

Official guidance stipulates trade envoys have a duty of confidentiality over sensitive commercial or political information related to their official visits, the BBC has said.

Misconduct in public office carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, according to the Crown Prosecution Service.