Prince Andrew Settles with Virginia Giuffre; Watch South African Jeffrey Epstein Alleged Victim

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Britain’s Prince Andrew has reached a settlement with Virginia Giuffre, a court filing showed on Tuesday, after she accused him in a lawsuit of sexually abusing her more than two decades ago when she was 17.

Giuffre sued the Duke of York (Queen Elizabeth II’s second son) last August, alleging he battered her while the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was trafficking her. Earlier today it was reported that Giuffre could not locate the original photograph that has been published around the world, showing Prince Andrew with his arm around her, but this was dismissed as unimportant since the photo is not the crux of the case.

In a joint court filing in Manhatten federal court, lawyers for Giuffre and Andrew said the settlement includes an undisclosed sum and that Andrew intends to make a substantial donation to Giuffre’s charity in support of victims’ rights. This means Andrew will be spared from a potentially embarrassing series of disclosures and accusations in the months leading up to and during a trial, which was set to begin later this year. According to reports in the UK, the deal was worth approximately £7.5million.

“Prince Andrew has 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. The Prince did not admit to any sexual assault in the statement. Instead it said: “It is known that Jeffrey Epstein trafficked countless young girls over many years. Prince Andrew regrets his association with Epstein, and commends the bravery of Ms. Giuffre and other survivors in standing up for themselves and others.”

One of those alleged survivors is South African Sarah Ransom who spoke to The View recently offering insight and advice. Her book “Silenced No More: Surviving My Journey to Hell and Back” details some of the horrors of abuse she claims to have endured at the hands of Epstein

South African Sarah Ransome Says She Was Under Jeffrey Epstein’s Control For 9 months | The View

https://youtu.be/u5YXyY4XHNo

(Reporting by Luc Cohen in New York, Jenni Baxter / SAPeople; Editing by Will Dunham / Reuters and Jenni Baxter / SAPeople)