EXCLUSIVE: Future King William 'Reveling in I Told You So' Moment As He 'Lobbied to Have Andrew Windsor Booted Out of Royal Family Nearly a Decade Ago'

Prince William is being vindicated as fresh revelations about the former Prince Andrew's ties to Jeffrey Epstein resurface – with sources telling RadarOnline.com the future king had pushed to have his uncle removed from royal life years ago and is now privately reflecting on a major "I told you so" moment.

The claims appear in William & Catherine: The Intimate Inside Story by Russell Myers, to be published on February 26.

The book details how William, now Prince of Wales, urged decisive action after Andrew's disastrous 2019 Newsnight interview, in which the then Duke of York attempted to explain his relationship with Epstein, a convicted s-- offender.

Andrew, 65, stepped back from public duties shortly after the broadcast but continued to attend family occasions until he was formally stripped of his military titles and royal patronages in October.

According to Myers, William had "questioned what benefit his uncle was to the wider operation" for years and had never liked his uncle.

The author quotes a palace source as saying: "Long before he was embroiled in the (Epstein) scandal, (William) had always thought his uncle was a bit of an ignoramus. He had seen how Andrew behaved in front of staff, ordering people about, the aggressive or dismissive manner – they had never seen eye to eye."

The source added: "William didn't think that either of them (Andrew or his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson) should be anywhere near the family, publicly or otherwise, but he was overruled by his father."

A separate palace source told the author: "The Prince of Wales was adamant the whole (Epstein) episode would never go away and, despite how others may have felt, there was no upside in Andrew being protected. (William's) view was crystal clear – Andrew shouldn't be anywhere near the family under any circumstances, not by association, not at family functions, anywhere. Every single time there was a new (Epstein) revelation, which no one knew when it was coming or what the next one would be, it was a stain on all of the family."

One insider close to William said the prince now feels events have borne out his earlier warnings.

"Among those closest to William, there's a prevailing feeling that he anticipated this trajectory years ago," a source told us.

"As far back as the late 2010s, he was expressing concerns that Andrew's continued proximity to the royal fold represented a slow-burning reputational risk. William didn't see it as a one-off scandal that would fade – he saw it as something that could resurface repeatedly and erode public trust over time."

Now, with each new tranche of Epstein documents and fresh headlines emerging in waves, he can't help but feel that his early instincts have been borne out.

"From his perspective, the ongoing revelations only reinforce the view he held nearly a decade ago – that decisive separation would have spared the institution years of renewed scrutiny and damage. There's a quiet sense of vindication, even if he takes no pleasure in how events have unfolded."

More than three million documents relating to the Epstein case have been released this month by the U.S. Justice Department, including emails referencing "HRH The Duke of York KG."

Andrew has denied wrongdoing and previously settled a civil claim brought by Epstein s-- trafficking victim Virginia Giuffre, who claimed he slept with her three times when she was a teen, without admission of liability.

The royal exile has also been accused of passing confidential information during his tenure as U.K. trade envoy – claims now under assessment by police.

Myers writes: "The late Queen sought to protect her son from complete banishment, clinging to the hope that he would one day be exonerated. Similarly, while acknowledging his brother could never return to public duties, Charles attempted to honor his mother's wishes and, for a long time, stopped short of pushing for Andrew's total banishment. By contrast, William made it clear that once he became King, there would be no such mercy."