Prince Andrew pressured by Royals to pay sex abuse accuser $12.9M: Report
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NEW YORK — Prince Andrew has settled a lawsuit by Virginia Roberts Giuffre accusing the Duke of York of sexually abusing her when she was a teenager and also being abused by the late financier Jeffrey Epstein.
The settlement reportedly worth a reported $12.9 million was revealed in a joint filing in Manhattan federal court, where Giuffre had sued Queen Elizabeth’s second son last August.
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Prince Andrew pressured by Royals to pay sex abuse accuser $12.9M: Report Back to video
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British media is reporting that Andrew was forced to settle by a “fed up” Prince Charles.
“I’m sure that Charles has had enough of the situation. Charles would have said to Andrew that he needed to get this sorted out as soon as possible and before the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations begin. Charles did not want this hanging over the Royal Family this year,” a Royal insider told the Daily Mail.
A former Royal protection officer told The UK Sun Andrew’s sudden U-turn was likely ordered by his mother, Queen Elizabeth.
“This wasn’t his decision, this was the Queen’s,” said Paul Page, adding that the prince’s story was “full of holes” and the Duke “would have been slaughtered” in his deposition.
It spares Andrew from a potentially embarrassing series of disclosures and accusations in the months leading up to and during a trial, which was slated to begin late this year.
Lawyers for Roberts and Andrew said the prince intends to make a substantial donation to her charity in support of victims’ rights.
The prince “never intended to malign Ms. Giuffre’s character, and he accepts that she has suffered both as an established victim of abuse and as a result of unfair public attacks,” the filing said.
“Prince Andrew regrets his association with Epstein, and commends the bravery of Ms. Giuffre and other survivors in standing up for themselves and others,” the filing added. “He pledges to demonstrate his regret for his association with Epstein by supporting the fight against the evils of sex trafficking, and by supporting its victims.”
Andrew, 61, has denied accusations that he forced her to have sex in 2001 at the London home of Epstein’s “pimp” Ghislaine Maxwell, and abused her at two Epstein properties.
Giuffre, 38, has been one of Epstein’s and Maxwell’s most prominent accusers.
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A spokeswoman for the prince said she had no comment beyond the court filing.
Epstein killed himself at age 66 in a Manhattan jail cell in August 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.
Last month, the Royal Family removed Andrew’s military links and military patronages, and said he would no longer be known as “His Royal Highness.”
The prince’s lawyers previously called Giuffre’s lawsuit “baseless” and accused her of seeking a payday.
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