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Princess Diana's former bodyguard, Ken Wharfe, has broken his silence on the disgraced Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. The SAS-trained Scotland Yard inspector served as the late Diana's personal protection officer from 1988 to 1993.

He 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."

The former Duke of York was held for 11 hours before being released under investigation by Thames Valley Police last month. The arrest came after the US Department of Justice released millions of Jeffrey Epstein-related files, including emails appearing to show Andrew forwarding confidential reports from his visits to Southeast Asia to the convicted sex offender while serving as Britain's trade envoy.

Speaking on the Suddenly Single podcast on Tuesday, the former bodyguard said: "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."

He added: "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."

Wharfe was also bodyguard to the young Princes William and Prince Harry from 1986 before being appointed Diana's personal protection officer.

Being mentioned in the Epstein files does not indicate any wrongdoing. Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has previously denied all accusations made against him in relation to the late Jeffrey Epstein.

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Emails disclosed from the Epstein files have also appeared to show Sarah Ferguson, Andrew's ex-wife, asking Epstein for £20,000 to cover rent in 2009, saying her landlord had threatened to go to the newspapers.

Ferguson divorced Andrew in 1996 but continued living with him at Royal Lodge in Windsor until recently.

Now, the former Prince resides on the Sandringham Estate in Wood Farm, in a property privately funded for by the King, until renovations are complete at Marsh Farm.

His lease of Royal Lodge had become symbolic of the wider problems his relationship with Epstein has caused. It raised questions about privilege, transparency and the use of public money.