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| The Duke of York called Virginia Giuffre’s “baseless” lawsuit an effort to “achieve another payday” from her accusations against the late financier Jeffrey Epstein |
Britain’s Prince Andrew has rejected Virginia Giuffre’s accusations that he sexually abused her more than two decades ago when she was 17, and urged a U.S. judge to dismiss her civil lawsuit.
In filings with the U.S. District Court in Manhattan, the Duke of York called Giuffre’s “baseless” lawsuit an effort to “achieve another payday” from her accusations against the late financier Jeffrey Epstein and his associates.
Andrew, 61, who is Queen Elizabeth’s second son, also said he was released from liability under a 2009 settlement agreement between Giuffre and Epstein, a registered sex offender.
He said that agreement covered “royalty,” among others, and that Epstein had insisted it cover “any and all persons” who Giuffre might sue.
“Virginia Giuffre may well be a victim of sexual abuse at the hands of Jeffrey Epstein, and nothing can excuse, nor fully capture, the abhorrence and gravity of Epstein’s monstrous behavior against Giuffre, if so,” Andrew’s lawyers wrote.
“However, and without diminishing the harm suffered as a result of Epstein’s alleged misconduct, Prince Andrew never sexually abused or assaulted Giuffre,” they added. “He unequivocally denies Giuffre’s false allegations against him.”
David Boies, a lawyer for Giuffre, said in a statement that Andrew’s bid to dismiss the lawsuit “fails to confront the serious allegations” it contained.
He also said the settlement agreement “on its face” applies “at most” to people involved in underlying litigation in Florida, thereby excluding the prince.
“Prince Andrew’s attempt now to use the 2009 release as a get out of jail free card shows how desperate he is to dodge and duck the facts of what he did,” Boies said.
Epstein killed himself at age 66 in a Manhattan jail in August 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.
REUTERS
