Bosses at Pizza Express have reportedly initiated an internal investigation regarding the alleged visit of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor to the chain. According to recent reports from BBC Newsnight, senior management at the restaurant conducted the inquiry following an alibi provided by the then-Duke of York during a well-known 2019 interview with Emily Maitlis. The investigation, which involved former employees, did not yield any conclusive evidence regarding his presence at the restaurant.
During the interview, Andrew claimed to have dined at a Pizza Express location in Woking, Surrey with his daughter Princess Beatrice on March 10, 2001, the same day he is accused of engaging in inappropriate behavior with Virginia Giuffre. However, Giuffre, who passed away last year, alleged that she and Andrew spent time together at Tramp nightclub in Mayfair, London that day when she was 17, before returning to Ghislaine Maxwell’s residence in Belgravia, where the alleged incident occurred.
Despite Andrew’s statement that he was at home with his children and had taken Beatrice to Pizza Express in Woking for a party on the mentioned date, questions linger regarding the conflicting accounts of the events. The Mirror has reached out to Pizza Express for their input on the matter.
In a separate development, BBC Newsnight revealed that they had submitted a Freedom of Information request to the Metropolitan Police to ascertain whether royal protection officers accompanied Andrew to the Woking branch 25 years ago. The police responded that they could neither confirm nor deny possessing such information due to national security concerns.
Andrew was arrested on his 66th birthday on suspicion of misconduct in public office, underwent questioning, and was subsequently released pending further investigation. Authorities have conducted searches at his former residences in Windsor and Norfolk, and are currently examining evidence obtained during the operation. Additionally, a formal request has been made to the US Department of Justice for the original Epstein files, with no information received as of yet.
