Prince Andrew hasn’t responded to queries in Epstein case – Nation News

Prince Andrew (Reuters)

WASHINGTON Britains Prince Andrew has provided zero cooperation to United States authorities probing sex trafficking allegedly carried out by deceased financier Jeffrey Epstein and co-conspirators, a prosecutor said on Monday.

The FBI and U.S. federal prosecutors contacted Prince Andrews lawyers and requested an interview with the prince, who socialised with Epstein, Manhattan-based U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman said at a news conference in front of Epsteins mansion.

As of Monday, Prince Andrew has provided zero cooperation, Berman said at the event hosted by Safe Horizon, a group pressing for more legal protection for abuse victims.

He did not say when U.S. authorities had requested an interview with Andrew.

Buckingham Palace declined to comment.

Andrew said in November he would be willing to help any appropriate law enforcement agency with their investigations, if required.

The Federal Bureau of Investigations probe is focusing on British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, a longtime associate of Epstein, and others who facilitated the wealthy financiers alleged trafficking of underage girls, law enforcement sources told Reuters in December.

Maxwell has not been accused of criminal wrongdoing.

Epstein had socialised with Andrew and other high-profile figures including U.S. President Donald Trump and former president Bill Clinton, according to court filings.

Epsteins suicide in August, at age 66, came a little over a month after he was arrested and charged with trafficking dozens of underage girls as young as 14 from at least 2002 to 2005. Prosecutors said he recruited girls to give him massages, which became sexual in nature. Epstein had pleaded not guilty.

In 2008, Epstein pleaded guilty to a Florida state charge of soliciting prostitution. He completed a 13-month jail sentence that was widely criticised as too lenient.

Andrew has described his association with Epstein as ill-judged and in November the prince stepped down from public duties as the allegations became a distraction for the royal family.

Andrew, Queen Elizabeths second son, has denied an allegation in a civil lawsuit from Virginia Giuffre, who claims she had sex with the prince when she was 17 in an encounter arranged through Epstein.

Giuffres lawsuit said Maxwell recruited her into Epsteins circle and Epstein forced her to have sex with him and friends including Andrew.

Despite Epsteins death, investigations continue into potential accomplices.

In December, sources told Reuters, law enforcement did not plan at that time to interview Andrew, although the investigation was said to be at an early stage.

The FBI has been following up on leads received from women who contacted a hotline the agency set up at its New York field office in the wake of Epsteins arrest in July, the sources said in December.

This month, the attorney general of the U.S. Virgin Islands sued Epsteins estate claiming he raped and trafficked dozens of young women and girls on a private island he owned in the territory.

The complaint filed by Virgin Islands Attorney General Denise George significantly broadened the scope of the financiers alleged misconduct, saying it spanned from 2001 to 2018 and targeted girls who appeared to be as young as 11 or 12.

The Virgin Islands is seeking civil penalties plus some assets from Epsteins estimated $577.7 million estate, including the forfeiture of his two private islands, Little St. James and Great St. James. (Reuters)