Buckingham Palace Responds to Allegations That Prince Andrew Groped a Young Woman's Breast
Prince Andrew has found himself in the headlines once again because of his previous association with Jeffrey Epstein. Epstein, the disgraced financier and convicted sex offender who was arrested this summer on charges of sex trafficking, died over the weekend in a Manhattan prison sell.
Just one day before Epstein was found dead by apparent suicide, a number of legal documents relating to his criminal case were unsealed, one of which included allegations about Prince Andrew.
A deposition given by Johanna Sjoberg—part of a 2015 defamation lawsuit filed by Virginia Roberts Giuffre against Epstein's associate—accuses Queen Elizabeth's son of touching her breast.
“I just remember someone suggesting a photo, and they told us to go get on the couch. And so Andrew and Virginia sat on the couch, and they put the puppet, the puppet on her lap. And so then I sat on Andrew’s lap, and I believe on my own volition, and they took the puppet’s hands and put it on Virginia’s breast, and so Andrew put his on mine,” said Sjoberg according to the court document.
When asked about the allegations by NBC News, Buckingham Palace gave the following statement:
“This relates to proceedings in the United States, to which The Duke of York is not a party. Any suggestion of impropriety with underage minors is categorically untrue.”
That is the same statement given to the Daily Mail when its reporter asked if Andrew was going to comment on Epstein's death. The Guardian reports that this isn't the first time Buckingham Palace has denied accusations of sexual misconduct related to Giuffre. A previous statement reads:
“It is emphatically denied that the Duke of York had any form of sexual contact or relationship with [Giuffre]. The allegations made are false and without any foundation."
In addition to the new statement from Buckingham Palace, Prince Andrew was photographed traveling to church with his mother the Queen on Sunday. The public appearance is being interpreted by some as a symbol of the British monarch's support for her second son in the face of controversy.
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