Even though Virginia Roberts Giuffre’s case against Prince Andrew fails, Charles understands the reputation risks that Andrew brings to the Royal family due to his links to the disgraced, convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
It seems like Prince Charles has finally realized that his brother Prince Andrew's position in the Royal family can no longer be protected due to increasing scrutiny following a US lawsuit against the Duke of York that alleges sexual abuse. "This will be unwelcome reputational damage to the institution" of the monarchy, shared a source close to the Prince of Wales, according to the Times of London. Even though Virginia Roberts Giuffre’s case against Prince Andrew fails, Charles understands the reputation risks that Andrew brings to the Royal family due to his links to the disgraced sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who died in August 2019 while in prison, explained the insider.
The source also noted that while Charles "loves his brother and has the ability to have sympathy for the slings and arrows that his brother endures," he "long ago concluded that it is probably an unsolvable problem." Per PEOPLE, they added, "This will probably further strengthen in the prince's mind that a way back for the duke is demonstrably not possible because the specter of this [accusation] raises its head with hideous regularity." Andrew stepped back from his public duties following an ill-received 2019 BBC interview in which the 61-year-old addressed his relationship with notorious financier Jeffrey Epstein and accusations of Virginia Roberts Giuffre who claimed that the Royal forced her to have sex with him thrice between 1999 and 2002 in London, New York and on a private Caribbean island owned by Epstein.
"I have no recollection of ever meeting this lady, none whatsoever. It just never happened," he claimed in the BBC interview, even though there's a photograph which shows the Duke of York with his arm around the waist of Giuffre. The picture is thought to be taken inside the London home of Epstein's associate Ghislaine Maxwell on March 10, 2001, when Giuffre was just 17. The accusations were reinforced after Giuffre filed a lawsuit on Monday, August 9, in New York, citing the Child Victims Act. "As the suit lays out in detail, I was trafficked to him and sexually abused by him," explained Giuffre in a statement to PEOPLE.
"I am holding Prince Andrew accountable for what he did to me. The powerful and rich are not exempt from being held responsible for their actions. I hope that other victims will see that it is possible not to live in silence and fear, but to reclaim one's life by speaking out and demanding justice," it continued. Britain's senior-most police officer assured that "no one is above the law" and that detectives will be reviewing the allegations of sexual abuse against Prince Andrew. Although Scotland Yard previously said they wouldn't reopen a criminal investigation into the claim made by Giuffre, they decided to do so after she sued the Duke and sought unspecified damages.
Commissioner of the Metropolitan police, Dame Cressida Dick, said, "No one is above the law. It’s been reviewed twice before, we’ve worked closely with the CPS [Crown Prosecution Service]." Dick also indicated officers would co-operate with the FBI if needed and noted that detectives are studying the civil claim for any new information. "We are of course open to working with authorities from overseas, we will give them every assistance if they ask us for anything, within the law obviously. As a result of what’s going on I’ve asked my team to have another look at the material," she added.
In 2016, the Metropolitan Police (Met) decided they did not have the appropriate authority to carry out an investigation into the human trafficking allegation as it "would be largely focused on activities and relationships outside the UK." Although there won't be any investigation as of now, Dick told LBC, "I'm aware that currently there is a lot more commentary in the media and [an] apparent civil court case going on in America. And we will, of course, again review our decision." Thus, Scotland Yard will be reviewing Giuffre's allegations against Andrew for a third time.
References:
https://epaper.thetimes.co.uk/the-times/20210813/281500754316725
https://twitter.com/LBC/status/1425741017043640321
Cover image source: Getty | Photo by Peter Nicholls - WPA Pool
