Buckingham Palace is braced for a fresh wave of scandal as hundreds of pages of court documents from a Jeffrey Epstein victim's lawsuit were made public, directly naming Prince Andrew.
The long-awaited files, unsealed by a New York judge, form part of a 2015 defamation case brought by Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre against the financier's accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell.
Giuffre's Allegations Take Centre Stage
At the heart of the documents are the serious and long-standing allegations made by Virginia Giuffre. She has consistently claimed she was trafficked by Epstein and forced to have sex with Prince Andrew on three separate occasions when she was just 17 years old—allegations the Duke of York has repeatedly and vehemently denied.
The unsealed records include depositions and legal motions that reference the Duke, potentially shedding new light on his associations and the specific allegations against him.
A Shadow Over the Palace
The release of these files delivers another crushing blow to the reputation of the monarchy, a institution still reeling from the fallout of the Duke's disastrous Newsnight interview and his subsequent withdrawal from public life.
Palace aides are understood to be on high alert, monitoring the fallout from the document dump and preparing for a potential new onslaught of damaging headlines.
What the Documents Reveal
While many names were known prior to the release, the full context of the legal battle is now public. The documents are expected to include:
- Detailed testimonies from victims and witnesses.
- Legal arguments surrounding the involvement of high-profile figures.
- Emails and correspondence that could provide further insight into Epstein's powerful network.
The public and media are scouring the thousands of pages for any new revelations that could implicate other powerful individuals or provide further evidence in the ongoing saga of Epstein's sex trafficking ring.
This latest development ensures that the Epstein scandal, and Prince Andrew's connection to it, will remain a dark cloud over the Royal Family for the foreseeable future.
