PRINCE Andrew will take any secrets he has about Virginia Giuffre “to his grave”, a lawyer for victims of Jeffrey Epstein said.
Lisa Bloom claimed the Duke of York‘s vow to speak to the FBI about the disgraced financier was an “empty promise”.
Prince Andrew pictured during his Newsnight interview in 2019[/caption]
He suggested a photo with his arm around Virginia Giuffre had been doctored[/caption]
The duke has failed to speak to the FBI about Jeffrey Epstein, pictured in a mugshot in 2017[/caption]
He previously appeared to commit to working with law enforcement during his car-crash Newsnight interview broadcast on November 16, 2019.
But a staggering 2,000 days have now passed since, and Andrew has remained tight-lipped and maintained he knew nothing of Epstein‘s criminal behaviour.
Attorney Spencer Kuvin, who also represents victims of Epstein, said Andrew has “hidden like a scared child” for years.
He branded the royal’s conduct as a “monumental stain on the royal family”.
Both Lisa and Spencer have slammed Andrew for failing to speak to authorities as the astonishing milestone slipped by this week.
It is hoped he could unknowingly hold information that could lead investigators to the “last piece of the jigsaw” to expose the full extent of Epstein’s twisted “sexual pyramid scheme“.
Lisa told The Sun: “That [his vow to speak to the FBI] was obviously an empty promise.
“I think he hoped that by making it in the press everyone would say, ‘Oh, good for you. And isn’t he wonderful?’ And the whole thing would die out, which, of course it has not.
“He’s never going to do that. He’s never going to cooperate with law enforcement.
“Any secrets he has about Virginia is he’s going to take with him to his grave. I think that’s pretty clear.”
Andrew, 65, has repeatedly ignored calls to tell US authorities what he knows about Epstein.
He has again been implored to after his sex abuse accuser Virginia’s sudden death last month.
Spencer told The Sun: “Andrew’s continued failure to adequately respond to allegations against him stands as strong evidence that he is afraid to speak with the FBI about his connections and interactions with Epstein.
“His cowardice serves as a monumental stain on the royal family.
“If he had any sense of bravery or justice, he would submit to a full interview with the FBI and explain his past behaviors.
“If he is guilty of a crime, he should be man enough to face his punishment.
“For the last 10 years, all Andrew has done is hide like a scared child behind the protection of his royal status.”
Virginia – who was found dead aged 41 on April 25 – sued Andrew in 2021, claiming she was forced to have sex with the Duke on three occasions when she was a teen.
What Andrew said about cooperating with US law enforcement:
PRINCE Andrew appeared to commit to working with law enforcement when he was given a car crash grilling by Emily Maitlis on Newsnight which was broadcast of on November 16, 2019.
And yet ever since the Duke has been accused of ducking and diving after a war of words with US prosecutors over his cooperation – insisting he would help but seemingly failing to do so.
He was accused in 2020 of offering “zero” help to the probe into Epstein.
Here is exactly what Andrew said during his interview:
EMILY MAITLIS: You seem utterly convinced you’re telling the truth, would you be willing to testify or give a statement under oath if you were asked?
PRINCE ANDREW: Well I’m like everybody else and I will have to take all the legal advice that there was before I was to do that sort of thing.
But if push came to shove and the legal advice was to do so, then I would be duty bound to do so.
EM: Because you’ve said there are many unanswered questions, everyone affected wants closure, you would help to provide that closure.
PA: If there was… in the right circumstances, yes I would because I think there’s just as much closure for me as there is for everybody else and undoubtedly some very strange and unpleasant activities have been going on.
I’m afraid to say that I’m not the person who can shed light on it for a number of reasons, one of which is that I wasn’t there long enough.
And if you go in for a day, two days at a time, it’s quite easy I’m led to believe for those sorts of people to hide their activities for that period of time and then carry on when they’re not there.
EM: Virginia Roberts’s lawyers, legal team say that they’ve asked for a legal statement from you. There is an active FBI investigation, would you be willing to provide that?
PA: Again, I’m bound by what my legal advice is… legal advisers tell me.
And in a later statement, Andrew added: “Of course, I am willing to help any appropriate law enforcement agency with their investigations, if required.”
She alleged she was made to have sex with Andrew for the first time at Ghislaine Maxwell’s house in London after a night out at the club Tramp.
The mum also claimed she was forced to have sex with the Duke on at least two further occasions by Maxwell and Epstein.
Andrew has always vehemently denied accusations.
During his notorious Newsnight interview, he even claimed he had no recollection of meeting Virginia and suggested a photo of him with his arm around her waist had been forged.
Lisa said: “It’s absurd for him to say her never met her when there’s a photograph of him with her, probably taken by Jeffrey Epstein, and with Ghislaine Maxwell in the background.
“He’s never been able to explain that photo. He’s always said maybe it was doctored.
“Well, he had at his disposal every forensic scientist who could have proved that and never did.
“Virginia always maintained that the photo was not doctored, that she wouldn’t even know how to do that. And frankly, I believe her.
“He was close with Maxwell and Epstein. We know that he went and visited Epstein after Epstein’s first conviction in 2008. And so that speaks volumes.”
Spencer previously insisted it would have been “impossible” for Andrew to not have known about Epstein’s abuse of girls.
Melania Trump, Andrew, Gwendolyn Beck and Jeffrey Epstein at a party at the Mar-a-Lago club in 2000[/caption]
Andrew pictured leaving St George’s Chapel after the Easter Mattins service in Windsor Castle last month[/caption]
Virginia Giuffre, who died last month, in tears during a BBC Panorama interview in 2019[/caption]
He said one of his clients said she saw the shamed duke at a party that was flooded with underage girls.
Court documents tolf how Andrew stayed at Epstein’s New York home, and was accused of taking part in an “underage orgy” on Epstein’s Caribbean island.
An unnamed Jane Doe – widely understood to be his accuser Giuffre – was allegedly “forced” by Epstein to “have sexual relations” with the duke.
She was allegedly told to “give the Prince whatever he demanded”.
In 2020, the FBI asked the Home Office for help to quiz Andrew.
That investigation was paused last year, however.
Lisa said: “Jeffrey Epstein was such a prolific predator.
“Hundreds have come forward, and usually there are many more who don’t come forward.
“We know there were as many as three girls a day for years.
“Those victims deserve justice. And he could not do that on his own.
“We know that Maxwell was basically his lieutenant who helped him. And now she’s incarcerated for a long time – good.
“But there were certainly others, and everyone needs to be brought to justice, and that’s why it’s important to have transparency.”
Andrew speaking to Emily Mailtis on BBC Newsnight more than 2,000 days ago[/caption]
Lisa Bloom represents victims of Jeffrey Epstein[/caption]
‘No way back’ for Andrew
Exclusive by Matt Wilkinson and Ryan Parry
PRINCE Andrew’s “delusional” comeback dreams are over after the death of his sex abuse accuser Virginia Giuffre, insiders say.
He remained silent on her suicide as a source said: “The door to a return is firmly closed.”
Just weeks before her death, sources close to the Duke claimed the King’s brother was “completely unsurprised” that an Instagram message saying that Virginia had four days to live after a road crash “turned out to be a fabrication”.
She said she was admitted to hospital after her car was hit by a bus. But police in Australia said they only had reports of a “minor crash” with no injuries sustained.
Other friends had suggested her admission in November 2022 that she “may have made a mistake” in alleging that paedophile US tycoon Jeffrey Epstein had trafficked her to lawyer Alan Dershowitz could have offered a way out for Andy.
One insider told The Sun: “Any notion that the message or her bus crash story could somehow make her an unreliable witness has now disappeared. The door is firmly closed on any return.”
There are now calls for him to “honour” his words when he paid millions to Virginia in 2022 and “pledged to demonstrate his regret for his association with Epstein by supporting the fight against the evils of sex trafficking and by supporting its victims”.
Andy’s office and Buckingham Palace both released public statements during the Duke’s highly-damaging China spy drama after court documents revealed his links to alleged spook Chris Yang.
But they have been silent since Virginia took her own life.
But royal sources insist that he will never return to be a working royal after he was stripped of his titles and roles by the late Queen Elizabeth due to the allegations and links to the late Epstein.
One insider said: “Andrew does deep down harbour hopes that he can make a comeback — but they are delusional hopes.”