It’s time for Prince to come clean over Epstein relationship
FROM his sunbed in Spain, Prince Andrew finally broke his silence following the jail cell suicide of his ex-pal Jeffrey Epstein.
The Duke of York, while on holiday with his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson (who accepted £15,000 from the pervert to help clear her debts) said he was “appalled” by the sex allegations against the convicted paedophile.
In a statement from Buckingham Palace this week, courtiers appeared to claim Andrew was unaware of Epstein’s crimes, despite him maintaining a friendship before and after he was jailed for child sex offences.
“The Duke of York has been appalled by the recent reports of Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged crimes,” the Palace said.
Recent? There is nothing new in the allegations surrounding Epstein that weren’t made, at the very least, four years ago when the Prince was forced to deny any wrongdoing then.
Nor have there been any new allegations against the Duke, including having sex with then 17-year-old Virginia Giuffre who was trafficked by Epstein across the Atlantic, that were not aired in 2015.
The Royal has repeatedly and vehemently denied all allegations against him.
But his Spanish sunshine statement only came after what had been an embarrassment for Buckingham Palace turned into a full-scale crisis.
At the weekend, a video emerged of Andrew inside Epstein’s ‘House of Horrors’ in New York.
The clip, from 2010, showed the Prince waving goodbye to Katherine Keating, the daughter of former Australian Prime Minister Paul
Keating, with a broad grin on his face.
Just an hour before Andrew was seen, Epstein himself was spotted leaving with a teen-looking blonde.
Now lawyers representing victims of the Wall Street financier want the Duke to give sworn testimony on “everything he knows”.
Attorney Brad Edwards, who represents several women, including “sex slave” Giuffre, made the request.
“I look forward to coordinating a formal deposition where he will be allowed to tell us everything he knows,” he said.
“We would like to do this as soon as possible, at his convenience, and again, we are very appreciative of his willingness to help.”
Good luck with that.
Day by day, the evidence of Epstein’s sickening crimes mounts up while the true extent of Andrew’s friendship with the paedophile grows ever more clear. This was no brief acquaintance or passing friendship.
The two were close for more than a decade, holidaying together around the world and sharing dinners in each other’s homes.
Despite being told after Epstein’s release from prison in 2009, he should end their friendship, arrogant Andrew would not listen.
He allegedly became incensed at being told that a registered sex offender was not good for the Royal Family to have in their midst.
The Duke of York is not like you or me. He is not just an ordinary member of the public.
He is a father to two adult princesses and a senior Royal who was made Britain’s special trade envoy on his retirement from the Royal Navy.
It was a post he still held in 2011 until a picture emerged of he and Epstein strolling through Central Park.
Today Andrew remains Commander and honorary ViceAdmiral of the Royal Navy.
These enormous privileges carry great duty, but they don’t seem to have had much effect on his behaviour.
Instead, he has earned notoriety for a self-indulgent lifestyle that includes taking meetings with unsavoury Middle Eastern tyrants while being flown around at the taxpayer’s expense.
His sense of self-importance and lack of self-awareness is a discredit to the Queen and risks grave harm to the Royal Family.
Lesser allegations would have seen any one of us removed from our jobs, even quizzed by the police.
It is clear there are serious questions here that need answers and it’s long overdue we heard them – not from some palace flunky, but from the man himself.