Epstein email says Andrew had photo taken with Virginia Giuffre

Jeffrey Epstein appears to have confirmed that Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was photographed with Virginia Giuffre, according to a newly released email.

The message sent by Epstein, who allegedly took the photo, is as follows: “Yes [Giuffre] “She was on my plane and yes, she had her picture taken with Andrew.”

Epstein’s statement appears to contradict the former prince’s claim that he has never met Ms. Giuffre and his long-held claim that the image of her with his arm around her may have been doctored.

The July 2011 email was released Wednesday, along with more than 20,000 pages of correspondence from the convicted sex offender and disgraced financier.

Ms. Giuffre, one of Epstein’s leading accusers, Andrew allegedly had sex with her three times in his youth.

Andrew, who denied the allegations, reached an out-of-court settlement with Ms Giuffre in 2022. There was no admission of liability or apology in the agreement.

Epstein’s email to his publicist, Peggy Siegal, was sent shortly after Ms. Giuffre was publicly identified in the Mail on Sunday.

The newspaper also published a photo of her with Andrew and Ghislaine Maxwell, who is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for sex trafficking.

Epstein’s message contradicts claims made by Andrew in a 2019 Newsnight interview in which he denied meeting Ms Giuffre and suggested the photo or some elements of it may have been fake.

Andrew said at the time: “No one can prove whether this photo has been doctored but I don’t remember it being taken.”

Documents released by Democrats on the House Oversight Committee suggest Andrew and Epstein remained in contact four months after the prince claimed their relationship had ended.

On March 4, 2011, Maxwell appears to have forwarded a right-of-reply email from the Mail on Sunday to Epstein.

The report includes a number of allegations, including that Andrew had sex with a young woman he met at Maxwell’s London home in 2001.

The message is then understood to have been forwarded by Epstein to Andrew via his redacted email address, which reads “The Duke”.

Here’s Andrew’s response: “Please make sure that every statement or legal letter clearly states that I am not involved in these allegations and that I know and know NOTHING about any of these allegations. I cannot take this situation anymore.”

The Mail on Sunday went on to publish his story alongside the photo.

It included allegations that girls were directed to sit on Andrew’s knee at Epstein’s New York home, that Andrew groped them and participated in sexual acts on Epstein’s private island.

The documents also reveal Epstein’s attempts to discredit Ms. Giuffre’s testimony.

In an email to his publisher in July 2011, Epstein also wrote: “The girl who accused Prince Andrew can easily be proven to be a liar too. I think Buckingham Palace would like that.”

“You must appoint someone to investigate the girl named Virginia Roberts who caused so much harm to the Queen’s son. [sic]”

The latest statement comes after Democrats in the US Congress demanded that Andrew answer questions as part of the investigation into Epstein, who died in prison in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.

A Democrat on the House Oversight Committee – Congressman Suhas Subramanyam – told BBC Newsnight that Andrew had not yet responded to the Committee’s invitation to testify before the committee.

He said the former prince “does not need to get on a plane to testify, he can do it remotely.”

Andrew stripped of all titles A memoir written after Ms. Giuffre’s death earlier this month has revived interest in her ties to Epstein and Maxwell.