Prince
Andrew quits royal
duties amid Jeffrey Epstein
scandal
Prince Andrew has stepped down from his royal duties amid growing backlash over his ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
21
November, 2019
Prince
Andrew has announced he is stepping down from his royal duties for
the “foreseeable future” amid growing backlash over the Jeffrey
Epstein scandal.
“It
has become clear to me over the last few days that the circumstances
relating to my former association with Jeffrey Epstein has become a
major disruption to my family’s work and the valuable work going on
in the many organisations and charities that I am proud to support,”
he said in a statement issued today by Buckingham Palace.
“Therefore,
I have asked Her Majesty if I may step back from public duties for
the foreseeable future, and she has given her permission.
“I
continue to unequivocally regret my ill-judged association with
Jeffrey Epstein. His suicide has left many unanswered questions,
particularly for his victims, and I deeply sympathise with everyone
who has been affected and wants some form of closure.
“I
can only hope that, in time, they will be able to rebuild their
lives.
“Of
course, I am willing to help any appropriate law enforcement agency
with their investigations, if required.”
Prince
Andrew’s “step back” will mean he’ll not only be out of the
public eye, but will take no money from the publicly-funded Sovereign
Grant - which supports working members of the Royal Family - while
his charities and patronages will be put on hold.
It’s
understood his absence from royal duties will continue until there
has been some form of conclusion in the Jeffrey Epstein case, or
unless his name is cleared.
Prince Andrew pictured leaving Buckingham Palace after his annoucement. Picture: Gary StoneSource:The Sun
Prince Andrew requested permission from the queen to step down from royal duties.Source:Supplied
In the statement was a bombshell detail. It’s the first time, the Duke of York has publicly expressed regret over his relationship with Epstein, and expressed any sympathy for the billionaire paedophile’s victims — two omissions from an extraordinary interview aired by the BBC’s Newsnight that sparked backlash.
The
Prince answered questions about his friendship with Epstein — a
convicted paedophile who died by suicide in a Manhattan jail on
August 10.
The
interview was widely described as a “trainwreck” with the royal
criticised for not showing
empathy for Epstein’s victims and for his decision to stay at
the wealthy financier’s New York home in December 2010. That came
just months after Epstein had served 13 months of an 18 month
sentence for procuring a minor for prostitution.
As
the fallout continues, several businesses and charities pulled their
support from the prince’s royal work.
Standard
Chartered has already cancelled its sponsorship of Andrew’s
Pitch@Palace, while AstraZeneca’s support is under review.
Outward
Bound Trust - of which he is patron - also announced it was holding a
board meeting this week to discuss the matter.
Meanwhile,
the FBI is continuing their investigation into Epstein and his
associates, and it remains to be seen whether Prince Andrew will be
called in to testify.
Prince
Andrew has also come under fire over allegations he also sexually
abused girls — claims he has vehemently denied — while visiting
his then-friend Epstein at his various properties.
A
photo of the British royal posing with his hand around teen Virginia
Giuffre — one of Epstein’s alleged victims — was purportedly
taken at British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell’s home and has become
a source of contention as the saga unfolds.
Prince Andrew and a then-teenage Cirgina.Source:Supplied
In
a 2009 legal case, Ms Giuffre publicly claimed Ms Maxwell had
recruited her into Epstein’s sex ring to be a “sex slave” when
she was just 16 years old.
Ms
Giuffre claims Epstein flew her to London on his private jet. After
dining with the Prince and dancing with him at the Tramp nightclub,
she claims, they had a sexual encounter in Ms Maxwell’s Belgravia
house.
Ms
Giuffre says Ms Maxwell directed her as a teenager to have sex with
Prince Andrew, former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell and
former New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson. They deny her claims. She
also claimed in the case, which was settled out of court, that Ms
Maxwell and Epstein sexually assaulted her, the Wall
Street Journal reports.
Virginia Giuffre is one of Prince Andrew’s accusers.Source:Supplied
Ms
Maxwell called Ms Giuffre’s claims “entirely false”, compelling
the latter to file the 2015 defamation suit. In May 2017, the case
was settled the day before the trial was scheduled to start.
Epstein’s
New York indictment referred to unnamed employees who prosecutors
said were involved in his alleged crimes in the early 2000s by
accepting payment to arrange massages that led to sex acts with young
girls, then encouraging them to recruit others.
The
woman who says she was forced to sleep with Prince Andrew as a
teenager has reportedly given an interview to the BBC’s Panorama
program.
But
the interview, in which Virginia Giuffre is said to reiterate her
claims about the Duke of York, is still yet to air despite being
filmed three weeks ago.
Prince
Andrew has repeatedly denied having sex with Virginia Giuffre, then
Virginia Roberts, when she said she was 17. He said he had “no
recollection” of meeting her.
Sources
close to the BBC show, which produces hour-long, in-depth
investigative news reports, say the interview has not yet aired
because it’s part of an ongoing probe.
A
BBC spokesman said the network did not comment on “ongoing
investigations”.
But Ms Giuffre is reportedly furious, with supporters suggesting it may have been held to avoid jeopardising the network’s interview with Prince Andrew that aired on BBC Newsnight on Saturday.
https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/celebrity-life/royals/virginia-giuffre-reportedly-furious-over-unaired-bbc-interview/news-story/7a7bfbbdbd5ae24d69bbfb1846d01e7f?fbclid=IwAR0HhSE7-KmZI_L4j93gtetnGodsk2NGqSYxPDWkabBrMTUP0QV6tYN9fwc
Socialite
Lady Victoria Hervey has today revealed how she once fled Jeffrey
Epstein's New York apartment amid fears that she was being 'watched
by hidden cameras' as the storm around her ex-boyfriend Prince Andrew
continues to grow.
The
aristocrat, who dated Prince Andrew in 1999, claimed she was offered
a place to stay in Manhattan by the convicted paedophile in 2001 but
'cut the trip short as I felt I was being watched'.
Lady
Victoria spoke to ITV's Good Morning Britain today as sponsors
continue to abandon Andrew's campaigns following his disastrous TV
interview on Saturday.
She
said she met Epstein in 2000 through his alleged madam Ghislaine
Maxwell, who suggested she stay at the apartment while working as a
model in the US.
The
flat was 'close' to Epstein's Manhattan mansion where Prince Andrew
frequently stayed and where it is alleged the disgraced tycoon sex
trafficked numerous underage girls.
She
claimed that despite being unaware of his predilection for young
girls at the time, she still found the experience 'uncomfortable' and
was concerned she was being spied on at the flat.
Lady Victoria spoke a day after Epstein victim Maria Farmer claimed Epstein kept surveillance cameras in some of the rooms inside his main Manhattan mansion.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7705321/Lady-Victoria-Hervey-left-Jeffrey-Epsteins-apartment-watched.html
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/epstein-guards-arrested-failing-check-him?fbclid=IwAR0PA1b9TMT7wFgHcOVITH53acZqXIqvIwbaAoBhZ7JYWvDUE9hteUkaVYY
Jeffrey Epstein accuser says Ghislaine Maxwell threatened her life, FBI "failed"
her
One
of Jeffrey Epstein’s accusers, who says she had an inside view of
his alleged sex trafficking operation, is sharing new details of what
happened. Maria Farmer and her younger sister, Annie, claim Epstein
sexually assaulted them. Farmer is suing the Epstein estate over the
alleged incident. In her first TV interview, Farmer talks to Anthony
Mason about why she’s still seeking justice even after Epstein’s
death.
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