Prince Andrew has come under renewed pressure to testify as a witness in cases against the late disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, following a BBC investigation into their relationship.
In the hour-long episode of Panorama, a lawyer representing five women who accused Jeffrey Epstein of abuse, said he has prepared subpoenas for the duke. This means that if the duke were to visit the US, he could be compelled to give evidence.
The episode featured an interview with Virginia Giuffre, who claims that she was forced to have sex with Queen Elizabeth’s second son on three occasions, including while she was 17 years old. Ms Giuffre called on “the citizens of the UK to stand up beside me and help me fight this fight.”
The Duke of York’s relationship with Ghislaine Maxwell, his friend and a former lover of Epstein, was investigated as well. Ms Giuffre alleges that the first time she was forced to have sex with the duke was at Ms Maxwell’s behest, in her London townhouse.
Last month, the duke denied the allegations of having sex with a teenager on the BBC’s Newsnight programme. However, his attempt to clear his name was widely criticised for its tone and his defence of the decision to befriend Epstein even with hindsight.
Since then, the duke has said that he “unequivocally regrets his ill-judged association with Jeffrey Epstein”.
Epstein was charged with sexually abusing “dozens” of underage girls in July 2019, but took his life in prison only a month later. A spokesperson for the palace said on Monday evening that the duke “deplores the exploitation of any human being”. The duke had said that he is “willing to help any appropriate law enforcement agency with their investigations, if required”.
In response to Ms Giuffre’s allegations, the spokesperson said that “it is emphatically denied” that the duke had any sexual contact with her, and said “any claim to the contrary is false and without foundation”.
Late last month, the duke announced that he was stepping back from royal duties “for the foreseeable future”, a rare step for a senior member of the royal family.
He has also withdrawn from his roles as chancellor of the University of Huddersfield, and as patron to London Metropolitan University and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
A palace spokesperson said the duke would remain involved with the Pitch@Palace initiative for entrepreneurs which he founded in 2014, albeit “outside of his public duties and outside of Buckingham Palace”. Previously, the final round of each Pitch@Palace competition was held at St James’s Palace.
Several big sponsors have distanced themselves from Pitch@Palace, including London-based banks Standard Chartered and Barclays, the British satellite group Inmarsat and several Australian universities.
