A new woman has come forward to accuse Jeffrey
Epstein of abusing her as a 15-year-old, and called for Prince Andrew to share
information on his former friend.
The woman, identified as “Jane Doe 15”, told reporters she suffered
a “vicious, prolonged… assault”.
Jane Doe 15, now 31, is the latest of more than a dozen women to sue
Epstein’s estate for alleged abuses.
It comes amid controversy over Prince Andrew’s ties to the disgraced
finacier.
In a recent interview, Prince Andrew was pressed on his friendship with Jeffrey
Epstein, and an accusation made by Virginia Giuffre that he had intercourse
with her at Epstein’s house when she was 17.
Prince Andrew denied having any relation with Ms Giuffre, but the interview
created a wave of criticism directed at the royal.
Jane Doe 15 gave a press conference in Los Angeles on November 18 with her
lawyer, Gloria Allred. She accused Jeffrey Epstein of abusing her at his New
Mexico ranch when she was 15, after she had met his secretary during a 2004
school trip to New York.
According to Jane Doe 15’s lawsuit, the secretary told her Jeffrey Epstein
was interested in helping girls from poorer backgrounds. She was flown on his
private jet to his ranch in New Mexico with several other young girls, she
said. Jane Doe 15 alleges he told her to give him a massage, then assaulted
her.
Jeffrey Epstein, 66, hanged himself in jail in August while awaiting trial.
He was accused of abusing dozens of young girls, some as young as 14. He
pleaded not guilty.
Jane Doe 15 did not accuse Prince Andrew of any wrongdoing but called on him
to come forward with more information.
She said: “Prince Andrew, and any
others who were close to Epstein, should come forward and give a statement
under oath on what information they have.”
Attorney Gloria Allred said she had called on Prince Andrew to “voluntarily meet with the FBI and prosecutors who are investigating this criminal case in New York, and also to provide his deposition under oath”.
Prince Andrew has opened up for the first time
to defend his former friendship with US financier Jeffrey Epstein, saying
“at no stage” did he “see or suspect” any criminal behavior.
Jeffrey Epstein, 66, took his own life in a jail cell this month while
awaiting trial on trafficking charges.
In a statement, Prince Andrew said he wanted to “clarify the
facts” around his “former association or friendship” with
Epstein.
The Duke of York, 59, said it was a “mistake” to meet Epstein
after he left prison in 2010.
He said: “During the time I knew
him, I saw him infrequently and probably no more than only once or twice a year.
“I have stayed in a number of his
residences. At no stage during the limited time I spent with him did I see,
witness or suspect any behavior of the sort that subsequently led to his arrest
and conviction.”
Prince Andrew – who said he first met Jeffrey Epstein in 1999 – added that
he had “tremendous sympathy” for all those affected by Epstein’s
behavior.
The duke said: “His suicide has
left many unanswered questions and I acknowledge and sympathize with everyone
who has been affected and wants some form of closure.”
Allegations against Jeffrey Epstein
began to surface in 2005 when the parents of a 14-year-old girl told police in
Florida he had molested their daughter at his Palm Beach home.
The financier was accused of paying
underage girls to perform s** acts at his Manhattan and Florida mansions
between 2002 and 2005.
A controversial secret plea deal saw
Jeffrey Eptstein plead guilty to a lesser charge of soliciting a minor for
prostitution. The tycoon received an 18-month prison sentence and was released
on probation in 2010.
Prince Andrew was photographed with Jeffrey
Epstein in New York’s Central Park in late 2010 – after the financier was
released from jail.
Footage has also emerged reportedly
showing Prince Andrew at Epstein’s mansion in Manhattan in 2010.
In the statement, released on August 24, the prince added: “I have said previously that it was a
mistake and an error to see him after his release in 2010 and I can only
reiterate my regret that I was mistaken to think that what I thought I knew of
him was evidently not the real person, given what we now know.
“This is a difficult time for everyone
involved and I am at a loss to be able to understand or explain Mr. Epstein’s
lifestyle.
“I deplore the exploitation of
any human being and would not condone, participate in, or encourage any such
behavior.”
In July 2019, Jeffrey Epstein was charged in New York with further
allegations of trafficking and conspiracy and was due to face trial next year.
Jeffrey pleaded not guilty to all the charges but if convicted, was facing up to 45 years in prison.
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.
Prince Andrew is set for his first public event since underage s** claims.
The Duke of York will host a reception of business people at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday evening.
Prince Andrew, 54, will speak and may make reference to the allegations and denials that have been issued but if he does any comments will be brief.
The woman, known legally as Jane Doe #3, alleges she was forced by financier Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted s** offender, to have s** with Prince Andrew at an age when she was a minor under Florida law.
It is the first time the woman, named elsewhere as Virginia Roberts, has given a statement in her own words to the courts.
Her lawyers said they had sent Prince Andrew a letter asking him to respond under oath to the allegations.
Prince Andrew is not facing any legal proceedings over the claims made in the US case.
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.
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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