FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump looks on as he meets South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 21, 2025. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo

The Miami Herald reports when President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump receive the royal welcome at Windsor Castle on Wednesday, the ghost of Jeffrey Epstein “will be trailing beside them.”

“All of the major players in the Trumps’ unprecedented second state visit to the United Kingdom have ties to the late, disgraced financier. And all would likely prefer to avoid the topic,” reports the Herald’s Emily Goodlin.

Like Trump, who is stirring controversy by laboring to keep the details of the convicted sex-trafficking and long-time friend Epstein’s case under wraps, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is embroiled in his own Epstein scandal. Newly released emails show Starmer’s U.S. Ambassador Lord Peter Mandelson “gave fervent support to Epstein after his conviction for soliciting a minor for sex,” according to the Herald.

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Mandelson was fired and has expressed remorse that he ever met Epstein, but the royal family is already in the mix thanks to Prince Andrew’s friendship with Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Maxwell is currently serving 20 years on charges related to sex trafficking, even though Trump has transferred her to a comfortable low-security facility after a gleaming interview with Trump’s DOJ that suggested no connection to the president.

British media reports Andrew lost his status as a working member of the family due to his intimate connection to Epstein, and he will not be present for any part of the visit. But files subpoenaed by the House Oversight Committee contain 100 emails between him and Andrew, according to the Daily Mail.

“There are concerns the cache could drop during the Trumps’ visit, causing quite a ruckus during what is supposed to be a glitzy and glamorous occasion,” the Herald reports, adding that “Andrew knows the first couple well. He was a guest at Mar-a-Lago in the early 2000s, along with Epstein and Maxwell. “There are photos of him and the Trumps together. On the Trumps’ first state visit to the UK in 2019, Andrew guided them during their stop to Westminster Abbey and attended the state dinner at Buckingham Palace.”

“This is a tawdry backdrop for a state visit,” royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams told The i-Paper. “The irony is that when he arrives in Britain next week for his second state visit, something unprecedented for an American president, the Royal Family will also be highly concerned about matters linked to Epstein.”

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Read the Miami Herald report at this link.