Prince under fire over TV interview
THE Duke of York is facing a barrage of criticism following his television interview about the Jeffrey Epstein sex scandal, with the royal accused of a lack of empathy with the victims.
Andrew’s attempt to set the record straight about his relationship with the convicted sex offender – and counter allegations he slept with one of Epstein’s groomed teenagers – has been widely condemned for its unsympathetic tone and lack of remorse for the friendship.
Green Party co-leader Sian Berry said the duke’s interview for a special edition of BBC’s Newsnight programme was not “very empathetic” with the teenage girls preyed on by the disgraced financier.
Commentators are questioning Andrew’s decision to speak in depth for the first time about the allegations and his 10-year friendship with Epstein, with one calling it an “appalling lack of judgment” and another saying his responses lacked conviction.
A legal expert said being a member of the monarchy did not give the duke a get out clause from being prosecuted in the US, and he was “unwise” to have given a detailed account of his actions to the media.
During the interview, Andrew, questioned by Newsnight presenter Emily Maitlis, twice stated his relationship with Epstein, who died in jail while facing sex trafficking charges, had some “seriously beneficial outcomes”, giving him the opportunity to meet people and prepare for a future role as a trade envoy.
The duke denied he slept with Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein’s victims, on three separate occasions, twice while she was underage, saying one encounter in 2001 did not happen as he spent the day with his daughter Princess Beatrice, taking her to Pizza Express in Woking for a party.
The same alleged sexual liaison, which the American said began with the royal sweating heavily as they danced at London nightclub Tramp, was factually wrong as the duke said he had a medical condition at the time which meant he did not sweat.
He cast doubt on the authenticity of a picture that appears to show Andrew with his arm around the waist of Mrs Giuffre, when a teenager.
The royal said: “... from the investigations that we’ve done, you can’t prove whether or not that photograph is faked or not because it is a photograph of a photograph of a photograph. So it’s very difficult to be able to prove it but I don’t remember that photograph ever being taken.”
The duke said the whole episode had not been damaging to the Queen, only to himself, and that the wider royal family “couldn’t be more supportive”.