Disgraced British royal, Prince Andrew, settled with sexual assault accuser Virginia Roberts Giuffre for an undisclosed sum after reportedly being pressured senior royals.
The Duke of York agreed to a settle on Tuesday, despite previously proclaiming his innocence and demanding a trial by jury to fight Giuffre’s claims that she was forced to have sex with him on three seperate occasions, while being trafficked as a minor by convicted sex offender, Jeffrey Epstien.
Though the settlement figure was not made public in court documents, the sum is estimated to be in the ballpark of $10 million by royal insiders and will also include “a substantial donation to Ms. Giuffre’s charity in support of victims’ rights.”
In a letter included in the Tuesday filing, Andrew did not admit to the actions he was accused of, but did note that he “regrets his association with Epstien,” who is a known trafficker of young girls.
“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 unsigned letter read.
“He pledges to demonstrate his regret for his association with Epstein by supporting the fight against the evils of sex trafficking, and by supporting its victims,” the document concluded.
Though Buckingham Palace has denied to comment on the matter, inside sources claim that Prince Charles pressured Andrew to settle before the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations begin, so the matter wasn’t “hanging over the Royal Family” this year.
A former Royal protection officer believes the command to settle came from the Queen herself, purportedly due to Andrew’s disastrous 2019 BBC interview, which would have likely been used as evidence against him in court.
Queen Elizabeth announced in January that she was stripping Prince Andrew of his HRH title, military titles, and royal patronages after discussions with Prince Charles and Prince William.
Now that the matter is closed, Andrew is unlikely to return to royal life, but still remains ninth in line for the throne.
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