Epstein Accuser Sues Prince Andrew Claiming Sexual Abuse

Prince Andrew was sued in New York by a woman who claims she was recruited by Jeffrey Epstein as a teenager and “lent out” to powerful men, including the second son of Queen Elizabeth II, for sexual purposes.

Virginia Giuffre claimed in suit filed Monday in Manhattan federal court that the British royal sexually abused her at Epstein’s home in New York, on his private island in the U.S. Virgin Islands and in the London home of Ghislaine Maxwell, the British socialite who is in jail awaiting trial on charges she helped Epstein traffic underage girls for sex.

According to Giuffre, Prince Andrew is liable for battery and for intentional infliction of emotional distress. “Prince Andrew committed sexual assault and battery upon plaintiff when she was 17 years old,” she claimed in the complaint.

There was no immediate response to an email seeking comment sent outside of business hours Monday to a spokesperson for the prince. Blackfords LLP, a UK law firm which has previously represented Priwnce Andrew, also didn’t immediately respond to an email sent and voicemail left after business hours.

‘Impossible’

Prince Andrew has previously denied having ever had sex with Giuffre, perhaps most notably in a 2019 BBC interview. Challenging Giuffre’s claim that he had been “profusely sweating” during one of their alleged sexual encounters, the prince contended that a medical condition dating from his Falklands War service meant it was “impossible” for him to sweat.

In a July 19 letter to Blackfords, Giuffre’s lawyer, David Boies, said she was running out of time to bring a suit under a recent New York law that extended the statute of limitations for underage sex abuse claims. In the letter, Boies offered to enter into a tolling agreement to stop the clock on the statute.

“We have previously sought, so far without success, to meet with Prince Andrew or his counsel to receive Prince Andrew’s information and views, and to discuss whether a negotiated resolution might be appropriate,” Boies wrote. A representative for Boies said the letter was ignored.

Giuffre is one of many women who have said they were sexually abused by Epstein and his friends before they were 18. Giuffre is seeking unspecified damages.

The case is Giuffre v. Prince Andrew, Duke of York, 21-cv-06702, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan).

–With assistance from Patricia Hurtado.

Top Photo: HRH Prince Andrew, Duke of York, visits the Showground on July 11, 2019 in Harrogate, England. Photo by Ian Forsyth/Getty Images.