Unredacted Epstein Email Claims Andrew Had Consensual Sex with Virginia Giuffre
An unredacted email sent to convicted paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein contains the first written corroboration that Prince Andrew had consensual sexual relations with Virginia Giuffre, according to newly released documents. The email exchange, which emerged in full today, shows Epstein did not correct a journalist who stated as fact that the former Duke of York slept with the trafficking victim, who tragically took her own life last year.
Journalist's Advice to Epstein
In the January 16, 2015 exchange with New York Times reporter Landon Thomas Jr, Epstein complained that his reputation had "taken a hit" following Ms Giuffre's claim in Florida court filings that she was trafficked by him for sex with Andrew in the early 2000s when she was just 17 years old. Thomas Jr advised Epstein to publicly confirm that Andrew had sex with Virginia Giuffre, then known as Virginia Roberts, arguing that the royal was "keeping the story alive."
"I mean in the end he had consensual sex with VR. And VR worked for you. The rest is atmospherics," Thomas Jr wrote. "You have moved on! People don't know that and can't accept that unless you say as much."
The journalist added: "Until you are able to come forward and address that the story lives on. I think the big issue is separating yourself from Andrew."
Palace Denials and Legal Settlement
This revelation comes despite Buckingham Palace issuing an unprecedented statement on January 3, 2015, just two weeks earlier, that "emphatically denied that the Duke of York had any form of sexual contact or relationship with Virginia Roberts." Andrew has consistently and vehemently denied ever meeting Ms Giuffre, let alone having sexual relations with her, though he paid her $12 million to settle her sexual assault lawsuit in 2022.
The email exchange first emerged in December 2025, but an unredacted version naming Virginia Roberts, referred to as VR, has now been discovered in the latest tranche of three million Epstein Files released by the United States Department of Justice on January 30. Landon Thomas Jr no longer works for the New York Times, having left after allegations surfaced that he asked Epstein to make a $30,000 charitable donation to a Harlem cultural centre in 2017.
Potential Criminal Prosecution
As these documents surface, leading criminal defence lawyer Marcus Johnstone has warned that Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor could face prosecution for "a great many" sexual offences because of evidence in the Epstein Files. These potential charges include sex trafficking, sexual exploitation, and even prostitution-related offences.
Police are reportedly examining whether Andrew "knowingly facilitated their exploitation" of trafficking victims, with particular scrutiny on allegations that a woman was flown into Britain on Epstein's private jet and taken to Buckingham Palace to see Andrew using the codename "Mrs Windsor."
"Andrew could technically face action for a great many alleged sexual offences," Mr Johnstone stated. "It may not even be beyond the realms of possibility that a Royal Palace was used as a brothel, but proving this is a much more challenging task entirely."
Misconduct in Public Office Allegations
Beyond sexual offence allegations, detectives could also investigate Andrew for misconduct in public office during his tenure as a UK trade envoy. Files reveal he passed on a confidential Treasury briefing about Iceland's financial crisis to a banker friend and forwarded messages about taxpayer-owned Royal Bank of Scotland to his adviser David Stern, who subsequently sent them to Epstein.
Emails show the King's brother allowed Epstein to organise meetings for him during an official trade mission to China in 2010, and he even attempted to arrange a meeting with Libyan dictator Colonel Gaddafi for Epstein at the sex offender's request, though this meeting never materialised.
Former business secretary Sir Vince Cable, whose tenure overlapped with Andrew's envoy role, has called the sharing of confidential reports "totally unacceptable" and demanded investigations into whether criminal corruption occurred.
Growing Pressure for Accountability
Dame Maggie Oliver, a former detective who helped expose the Rochdale grooming scandal, has joined calls for Andrew to be interviewed about the true extent of his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. She emphasised that Andrew should not be protected from the law because of his royal status.
King Charles has stated he is "ready to support" police as they consider allegations against his brother, though officers have yet to question Andrew. The country's top prosecutor has also declared that the 65-year-old former Duke of York is not "above the law."
Epstein's Boeing 727–100 private jet, infamously known as the "Lolita Express," landed approximately 90 times in the UK according to the Epstein Files, including after his 2008 conviction for child sex offences. The documents suggest at least one Epstein victim was allegedly flown into Britain and taken to Andrew at Buckingham Palace, with the former prince allegedly instructing aides: "Mrs Windsor will arrive shortly, please let her in and show her up."
