A newly released batch of evidence from the Jeffrey Epstein investigation has delivered a fresh blow to the Duke of York, with a seemingly incriminating email exchange between Ghislaine Maxwell and the convicted paedophile taking centre stage.
Among a massive trove of 20,000 pages of documents, one email from January 2015 appears to show Maxwell informing Epstein that she had been instructed to deny knowledge of an event where Andrew "received a massage" at her London residence.
The Bombshell Email Exchange
The communication, sent just days after Andrew's name surfaced in US court documents, reveals Maxwell's collusion with Epstein. "I have to distance myself from you in a statement too," Maxwell wrote. "And they need me to say I was not aware of massage w/andrew in my house."
Epstein's brief response was: "I am on the phone with another attny (sic) getting you an answer." Legal experts examining the emails noted that Maxwell's wording is particularly telling, as she does not deny the event occurred, only that she was told to claim she was unaware of it.
The Allegations and the Infamous Photograph
This revelation directly relates to the accusations made by Virginia Giuffre, who claimed that Andrew had sex with her on three occasions when she was 17 years old. One of these alleged encounters is said to have taken place at Maxwell's home in Belgravia.
The notorious photograph of Andrew with his arm around a teenage Giuffre's waist, with Maxwell smirking in the background, is believed to have been taken at that very location on 10 March 2001. Giuffre, who died by suicide in April of this year, had previously stated that the term "massage" was used as a code word for sexual acts within Epstein's circle.
Mounting Political and Legal Pressure
The email disclosure comes at a time of increasing pressure on the disgraced prince. Earlier this month, Andrew was formally requested to provide evidence to a US congressional committee investigating Epstein's criminal network.
Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, co-signed a letter inviting Andrew to participate in a transcribed interview. The committee stated its goal is to "understand the full extent of [Epstein’s] criminal operations."
Andrew was given a deadline of 20 November to respond to the request. However, he is not legally compelled to comply, as Congress lacks the power to subpoena foreign nationals. The Duke of York has consistently and vehemently denied all allegations made against him.
Further deepening the intrigue, other emails within the 20,000-page release mention Andrew by name. In one, Epstein reportedly confirmed to a journalist that the controversial photograph with Giuffre was authentic.
