Zürcher Nachrichten - UK's Andrew and Mandelson pictured in bathrobes with Epstein

The image is believed to be the first known photograph of the two men with Epstein. They are both currently engulfed in scandal in the UK over their ties to their mutual friend.

The undated photograph, first reported by ITV News, shows King Charles III's disgraced brother and Britain's former ambassador to Washington sitting barefoot outside on a wooden deck.

They appear to have mugs with a US flag on them on a wooden table in front of them. Epstein is wearing a dark shirt and light trousers.

ITV said the picture was taken on Martha's Vineyard, an island in the northeastern US state of Massachusetts, and was believed to have been snapped between 1999 and 2000, before Epstein was sentenced to prison.

It was included as part of millions of documents released by the US justice department earlier this year.

Andrew and Mandelson were arrested last month on suspicion of misconduct in public office over their connections to Epstein, who was convicted of child sexual offences in 2008.

Andrew, who was stripped of his royal titles last year, is accused of sharing sensitive documents with Epstein during his time as a UK trade envoy between 2001 and 2011.

Files have suggested that Mandelson also leaked official information to Epstein when he was a government minister, including during the 2008 financial crash.

Both have denied wrongdoing and neither has been charged.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer sacked Mandelson as his envoy in Washington in September last year after new information revealing the extent of his friendship with Epstein came to light.

Andrew settled a US civil lawsuit in 2022 brought by Virginia Giuffre, who died by suicide last year.

She claimed she was trafficked three times to have sex with Andrew, starting in 2001 and twice when she was 17.

Andrew has always denied the allegations and the settlement did not admit liability.

Both Andrew and Mandelson feature many times in the so-called Epstein files.

Images show Andrew bent over an unidentified female and lying across the laps of a number of women, while Mandelson is pictured in his underpants.

M.Hug--NZN