The second son of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II, the Duke of York, Prince Andrew, may be sent into exile by his family and disqualified from using the title “His Highness” on charges of sexual assault, the Sunday Times reported.
According to the publication, the Queen could make such a decision if Prince Andrew loses the case in a US court for raping a 17-year-old girl.
Sources in the newspaper close to the British royal family say the royal court is actively discussing plans in the event that Virginia Juffrey, who is said to be the prince’s victim, wins the lawsuit against him.
Then the prince will not be able to leave the country due to the threat of extradition to the United States, will be forced to live much more modestly and will probably move out of the mansion “Royal Lodge” near Windsor Castle.
If the case fails, the prince will also be asked to stop using his official title, relinquish his honorary military ranks and his role as patron of many charities.
Another hearing on Juffre’s lawsuit will be held on January 4 at the Southern District Court in New York. The defense of Prince Andrew wants the case to be terminated on formal grounds, BG VOICE reported.
The prince’s representatives are trying to prove that the case cannot be heard in the United States, where Juffre was born and raised, as the plaintiff has long since moved to Australia and resides there. They also cite an out-of-court settlement between Juffre and American businessman Jeffrey Epstein in 2009, under which she was obliged not to prosecute both Epstein himself and his acquaintances, including Prince Andrew. The amount that the woman received after that, as well as the conditions for releasing the financier, whom she accuses of sexual exploitation, have not been made public.
Juffre claims to be one of the victims of Epstein, who linked her to the son of Elizabeth II. She first made public charges against the Duke of York in 2014. According to the woman, the prince had sex with her three times against her will in 2001, when she was only 17 years old. One of these episodes is said to have taken place in London, where Epstein, a friend of Prince Andrew, took her on a private plane. Juffre seeks compensation from the 61-year-old prince for his physical and mental injuries.
The Duke of York himself has repeatedly denied allegations of sexual intercourse with her. He claims that he has never met her, and the photo in which they are together in the company of Epstein’s mistress – the British Gislane Maxwell, is fake.
In November 2019, the queen’s son was forced to resign amid allegations by Juffrey that he was among several men with whom Epstein and Maxwell forced her to have sex.
Epstein was arrested by New York State law enforcement in July 2019. He was charged with sexual assault and inducing minors into prostitution. Prosecutors say there is evidence that between 2002 and 2005, the businessman organized visits to his home in New York’s Manhattan neighborhood for dozens of underage girls, at least 14 of whom were 14 years old.
The prosecution of the financier in the United States was terminated after he committed suicide in a prison cell on August 10, 2019.
On December 30 last year, Maxwell was found guilty of sexual exploitation of minors and faces up to 65 years in prison.
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