Sarah Ferguson, the former Duchess of York, has remained silent on the arrest of her ex-husband, Prince Andrew, amid ongoing scrutiny of her own ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Ferguson, who married Andrew in 1986 and divorced him in 1996, has previously described him as 'amazing' and called them 'the happiest divorced couple in the world'. She has also rejected allegations against him, branding his accuser Virginia Giuffre a liar.
However, Ferguson's own closeness to Epstein is now under renewed focus. Emails from US Department of Justice files reveal she maintained contact with Epstein after his 2008 conviction for soliciting a minor. In one 2009 email, she wrote, 'Cannot wait to see you.' Another showed Epstein paid $14,080 to fly Ferguson and her two daughters to the US for lunch. In 2010, she emailed him, 'You are a legend... I am at your service. Just marry me.'
Ferguson's financial dependence on Epstein has also been exposed. The financier wired her $150,000 in 2001, which she claimed was for share options from Weight Watchers. Despite publicly apologising for her association with Epstein in 2011, she privately emailed him to 'humbly apologise' for denouncing him, calling him 'a supreme friend'. She later said she sent that email to 'assuage Epstein and his threats'.
The revelations come as six of Ferguson's businesses are set to be struck off the Companies House register after becoming dormant. Her financial struggles have been well documented, including a 2010 sting where she offered to sell access to Prince Andrew for £500,000. She later admitted, 'It is true my finances are under stress.'
Ferguson's daughters, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, have also faced questions about the funding of their lavish lifestyles while working low-paid jobs in their 20s. The Epstein files have opened up further scrutiny of the family's finances and ties to the disgraced financier.
