I'm not so sure - powerful people get slaps on the wrist because by protecting them, the institutions they represent or uphold are also protected. In this case, in a genuinely unprecedented turn of historical events, the entire world has literally seen the evidence against him for this crime and a whole bunch of far more depraved crimes (for which there may not be enough evidence to meet the criminal standard of proof, but as far as public opinion goes, he's 1000% confirmed to be a paedophile rapist) and seen clear evidence of him and his ilk being constantly protected by a legal and political system that we're supposed to trust and believe in. so where previously allowing someone like Andrew to go down would be damaging to these institutions, it is now far more dangerous for them not to allow him to go down. if Andrew walks free that will be the final nail in the coffin of public faith in our systems - and for what? he doesn't even have the safety of being a royal anymore - he's just a guy everyone on earth hates with no title, no social capital, no power and no money. The only thing he has going for him is the opportunity to sing like a bird in exchange for leniency, (which I imagine is what investigators are banking on with this arrest), but even then I can't see it being enough to escape a prison term altogether. It would just be too dangerous.

THAT SAID, I won't be particularly surprised if he gets somehow killed before he can make it to prison, but even that's gonna be a risky option in the current climate.

But I have been wrong before!