Prince Andrew's Business Adviser Accused of Being 'Chinese Spy', Banned from U.K.: Reports

Prince Andrew is at the center of more controversy.

The Duke of York, 64, who is King Charles' brother, reportedly had close business links with a Chinese national, who is alleged to be a spy, according to multiple reports.

The man, who has not been named, has been banned from the U.K. following a special immigration investigation. On Friday, Dec. 13, the BBC reported that he had lost an appeal against a March 2023 decision to ban him from the U.K. on national security grounds.

The U.K. newspaper The Times reported that the 50-year-old businessman had been appointed as a "business adviser" by Andrew and promised access to the highest levels of the royal family "in an apparently serious breach of national security."

The British security services are said to have found the man was a member of the Chinese Communist Party and was working for its United Front Work Department, which gathers intelligence, according to the outlet.

Related: Princess Beatrice, Princess Eugenie and Their Kids Are 'Spending More Time' with Prince Andrew

The BBC reported that the man even received an invite to Andrew's 60th birthday party in 2020 and was told he could act on his behalf to seek investors in China. According to The Times, he was also invited into the royal estate at Windsor.

Per the BBC, in a letter found on one of the man's electronic devices, one of Andrew's advisers told the alleged spy, "Outside of [the prince's] closest internal confidants, you sit at the very top of a tree that many, many people would like to be on."

In a briefing document that was also reportedly found, the "main talking points" for a call the man was set to have with Andrew were listed. According to the BBC, the document read, "IMPORTANT: Manage expectations. Really important to not set 'too high' expectations — he is in a desperate situation and will grab onto anything."

Buckingham Palace has not commented on the development.

Related: Prince Andrew Is Almost Thrown from His Horse in Dramatic Photos of His Morning Ride in Windsor

Andrew stepped back from public duties in 2019 after his bombshell interview with the BBC about his ties to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein. During the interview, Andrew also said he had “no recollection of ever meeting” Virginia Roberts Giuffre, who alleges she was forced to have sex with the royal three times between 1999 and 2002, including on a private Caribbean island owned by Epstein, when she was 17 years old. Epstein died in prison while awaiting federal sex trafficking charges in August 2019.

Andrew has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and announced his step back from royal duties a few days after the explosive interview aired. The royal said he continued to "unequivocally regret my ill-judged association with Jeffrey Epstein" in the official statement announcing his decision.

The transition was made official when the late Queen Elizabeth stripped Andrew of his military titles and patronages in January 2022 amid Giuffre's civil sexual assault lawsuit. An out-of-court settlement for an undisclosed sum was reached the following month.

Andrew has since been involved in a tug-of-war over whether or not he and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, would be able to stay at Royal Lodge, a vast home on the Windsor estate.

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Despite his brother Charles, 76, reportedly cutting off Andrew's allowance this summer, Andrew is reported to have found the funds to enable him to stay at Royal Lodge. There had been a suggestion that he would move to Frogmore Cottage, which has been vacated by Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. In an updated version of his book, Charles III: New King. New Court. The Inside Story, author Robert Hardman wrote that Andrew did not accept a proposal to relocate from the Royal Lodge to the "considerably smaller property" of Frogmore Cottage on the Windsor estate.

Andrew and Fergie, 65, along with their two daughters Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie and their families, are expected at the annual royal family Christmas gathering at Sandringham, Norfolk, later this month.

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