An unsealed deposition has revealed that Jeffrey Epstein refused to answer questions about whether he attempted to blackmail the Duke of York over his alleged sexual encounter with Virginia Giuffre.
Epstein, who was convicted of sexual assault, took the fifth amendment and declined to answer almost all of the questions put to him during an interview conducted under oath as part of Giuffre’s civil claim against Ghislaine Maxwell. Epstein was quizzed over whether he had instructed Giuffre to have sex with the prince and whether the information gathered as part of the legal action could affect the Duke’s reputation.
The transcript of Epstein’s interview was made public as part of the final tranche of documents to be released in Giuffre’s 2015 case against Maxwell. A total of 215 documents have been unsealed over five days after media representatives argued that it was in the public interest to uncover the names of individuals.
Prince Andrew stepped down from public life following controversy surrounding his friendship with Epstein, and paid millions to settle a civil sexual assault case with Giuffre. Although he has denied all allegations of wrongdoing, he was removed from the working British monarchy and no longer uses his HRH style. Giuffre had claimed that Prince Andrew sexually assaulted her when she was 17, and that she had been trafficked by Epstein.
During Epstein’s deposition, Paul Cassell, Giuffre’s counsel, questioned Epstein on whether events surrounding Giuffre’s situation meant it would be fair to say that he forced her to have sex with Prince Andrew. Epstein had been convicted of sexual assault in 2008, and further details of his behaviour with underage girls were revealed last year after Epstein was found dead in jail, having apparently taken his own life.
The release of the latest documents could lead to increased public scrutiny of Prince Andrew. Earlier this year, the Duke was criticised for his failure to co-operate with US authorities. The US attorney’s office for the Southern District of New York has accused Prince Andrew of offering to co-operate only “on his own terms”. In March, the Duke’s lawyers said he had offered assistance three times.
