Virginia Giuffre: Epstein accuser planning to sue Prince Andrew, reports say
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The women who claims Prince Andrew had sex with her while she was a 17-year-old trafficking victim of convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein may be set to sue the royal, according to reports.
Virginia Giuffre (née Roberts) has claimed that Prince Andrew had sex with her on three separate occasions while she was aged 17, after she was procured by Epstein’s former lover Ghislaine Maxwell as a “sex slave”.
While Prince Andrew has denied all the claims against him and says he does not even remember meeting his accuser, a photo of the pair together when Ms Giuffre was a teenager has been widely circulated – suggesting the pair did meet on at least one occasion around that time.
The allegations made against the Duke of York were in lawsuits filed in Epstein and Ms Maxwel, who is currently awaiting trial for her alleged involvement in procuring teenage girls for Epstein to abuse, and now it is reported that Ms Giuffre is intending to sue Prince Andrew in civil court in New York.
According to the Times, Ms Giuffre has until Saturday 14 August to file a claim under the New York Child Victims Act - as she would have been considered a child under New York law at the time the alleged incidents took place.
Such a suit, if filed, would mean the Duke of York would be questioned under oath about the allegations, while a failure to appear before the court could result in a judgement that would compel Prince Andrew to pay damages.
The reported move comes as Ms Giuffre’s lawyers claim Prince Andrew has failed to respond to requests to settle the matter out of court. The Times reported that Ms Giuffre’s lawyers also told Prince Andrew about the August deadline in a letter sent in July.
The potential lawsuit would ‘would be based on her being lent out to Prince Andrew for sex by Jeffrey Epstein and [her] being under 18,’ Ms Giuffre’s lawyer David Boies, told theMail on Sunday, and would claim ‘improper sexual violations, physical and emotional distress’, and seek damages.
The Independent has reached out to Prince Andrews for comment.
