Prince Andrew has denied claims by American Virginia Roberts that she was forced to have s** with him when she was 17 and says he wants to focus on his work.
In his first public appearance since the claims were made, the Duke of York said he wanted to “reiterate” the denials issued by Buckingham Palace.
Prince Andrew, 54, was speaking at a World Economic Forum reception in Davos, Switzerland.
Virginia Roberts’s lawyers have repeated the claims in new documents given to a court in Florida.
The woman, who is referred to in the case as Jane Doe #3, alleges she was forced by financier Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted s** offender, to have s** with Prince Andrew when she was 17.
Buckingham Palace has previously said the claims against Prince Andrew are “categorically untrue” and lack “any foundation”.
Prince Andrew said: “Firstly I think I must, and want, for the record, to refer to events that have taken place in the last few weeks.
“I just wish to reiterate and to reaffirm the statements that have already been made on my behalf by Buckingham Palace.
“My focus is on my work and this evening’s reception allows me to tell you about just a couple of the initiatives that I have founded and am passionate about.”
The new documents, filed in Florida, mark the first time Virginia Roberts has given a statement about the allegations in her own words.
The woman’s lawyers said they had sent Prince Andrew a letter asking him to respond under oath to the allegations.
They say the letter was sent back to them as having been refused by the recipient.
The allegations against Prince Andrew emerged in evidence submitted to a US court in a case involving Jeffrey Epstein, who spent time in jail in 2008-2009.
Prince Andrew, the fifth in line to the throne, stepped down as UK trade envoy in July 2011 following controversy over his then friendship with Jeffrey Epstein.
The Duke of York is not facing any legal proceedings over the claims made in the US case.
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Prince Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson have bought a luxury chalet in the Swiss resort of Verbier.
The chalet, thought to be worth up to £13 million ($20 million), was bought by the divorced couple on a joint mortgage.
The Duke and Duchess of York have links with the ski resort going back at least 17 years, when they went there on holiday with their two daughters.
The purchase has been described as a “family investment”. Buckingham Palace declined to comment.
The chalet was bought on a joint mortgage for a cost of between £8 million ($12 million) and £13 million ($20 million).
A source close to Sarah Ferguson described the purchase as a “family investment”.
“They holiday in Verbier several times each year as all the family are keen skiers and it makes sense to have their own place there,” the source said.
Although Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson divorced in 1996 after 10 years of marriage, they remained on good terms as they raised their two daughters, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, and the duchess lives in the family home of Royal Lodge in Berkshire.
Queen Elizabeth’s son, Prince Andrew, was named this week in an ongoing US lawsuit brought by a group of women who claim they were trafficked to the world’s rich and powerful as part of an alleged underage “s** slave” ring run by American investment banker Jeffrey Epstein.
The allegation, found in a court filing this week, prompted Buckingham Palace to issue an unusual statement to the Guardian, noting that the allegation surfaced in “long-running and ongoing civil proceedings in the US to which the Duke of York is not a party”.
The statement continues: “As such we would not comment in detail. However, for the avoidance of doubt, any suggestion of impropriety with underage minors is categorically untrue.”
As part of a 2008 plea deal with prosecutors, Jeffrey Epstein spent 13 months in prison on a state charge of soliciting prostitutes. According to unsealed documents pertaining to that deal, Jeffrey Epstein was the subject of a federal investigation probing allegations that the powerful figure abused dozens of underage girls at his Palm Beach mansion. The deal effectively allowed him to avoid potential federal charges stemming from the investigation.
The lawsuit, filed by two anonymous alleged victims, charges federal prosecutors with violating a statute by not consulting with them before finalizing the plea deal. The latest filing is a motion to expand that existing case to include the allegations of two more women.
The two women named Prince Andrew, Alan Dershowitz and other powerful associates of Jeffrey Epstein as participants in the alleged abuse ring.
It’s the first time Prince Andrew’s name has appeared in a court document alleging that he abused Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged victims.
According to the Guardian, this isn’t the first time Prince Andrew’s name has been linked publicly to the allegations against Jeffrey Epstein.
Prince Andrew and Jeffrey Epstein were friends for years — before, during and after the banker served time in prison.
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