Andrew’s ‘zero co-operation’ with FBI in Epstein probe
PRINCE Andrew has provided “zero co-operation” to US investigators over the sex trafficking ring of his paedophile friend Jeffrey Epstein, a prosecutor said yesterday.
Geoffrey Berman said the Duke of York’s lawyers had been contacted by prosecutors and the FBI.
They had requested to interview him as part of the investigation, he told a press conference staged outside Epstein’s former New York mansion.
Mr Berman, the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York who is overseeing the investigation, said: “To date, Prince Andrew has provided zero co-operation.”
Epstein, 69, was found hanged in a New York prison cell in August where he was awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.
Mr Berman was speaking at an event to promote a new law that makes it easier for victims to sue over childhood abuse.
Backlash
Before being asked about the Duke of York, Mr Berman confirmed the investigation was looking at possible “conspirators” who worked with Epstein.
He added: “Jeffrey Epstein couldn’t have done what he did without the assistance of others and I can assure you that the investigation is moving forward.”
Andrew, 59, stepped down from royal duties “for the foreseeable future” in November after an angry public backlash to a disastrous interview he gave to BBC Newsnight in the wake of the scandal.
At the time he said: “I am willing to help any appropriate law enforcement agency.”
The Duke of York, during the interview, said that he had “let the side down” by staying at the home of convicted sex offender Epstein, adding that it was the “wrong thing to do”.
Following the controversial Newsnight interview, he was accused of lacking empathy for Epstein’s victims and of failing to show regret over his friendship with the disgraced financier.
Virginia Giuffre, who claims she was trafficked by Epstein to sleep with the Queen’s second son in London, New York and the US Virgin Islands from when she was 17, said in an interview with BBC Panorama that she was left horrified and ashamed after an alleged sexual encounter with Andrew in 2001.
She claimed she had danced with Andrew in Tramp nightclub, adding that he was “the most hideous dancer I’ve ever seen in my life” and “his sweat was... raining basically everywhere”.
In the Newsnight interview, Andrew maintained that he does not recall meeting Giuffre, who was called Roberts at the time. He insisted he did not spend time with her at Tramp Nightclub in London, after which she claims the pair first had sex.
The Duke was accused of sleeping with her on three separate occasions but he has denied the allegations.
Disputed
He said the alleged encounter in 2001 did not happen as he had taken his daughter Princess Beatrice to Pizza Express in Woking, Surrey, for a party and they had spent the rest of the day together.
A photograph apparently showing Andrew with his arm around then 17-year-old Giuffre and with Epstein’s friend Ghislaine Maxwell standing in the background, has been widely published. Supporters of Andrew, however, have disputed its authenticity.
Andrew insisted he had no recollection of meeting her.
He claimed he had been unable to sweat at the time because of a condition he developed during his time as a Royal Navy helicopter pilot in the 1982 Falklands war.
A source said: “This issue is being dealt with by the Duke of York’s legal team.”
Buckingham Palace is not commenting on the matter.
Mr Berman refused to comment when asked if Ghislaine Maxwell is co-operating with US investigators or on the timeframe of the investigation as several victims have complained about the length of time it is taking.