By Aaron Miller-
Prince Andrew has been sued in New York by Jeffrey Epstein’s former teenage sex slave, accusing the royal of abusing her at the paedophile’s mansion.
Virginia Giuffre has issued legal proceedings against the Duke of York, 61, over allegations he abused her at the late Wall Streets financiers Manhattan home, and another location while she was under 18.
The lawsuit accuses the father-of-two of sexual assault and “intentional” emotional distress.
Guiffre brought proceedings under America’s “Child Victims Act” saying she was “trafficked to him and sexually abused by him” when she was 17. Giuffre alleges she was instructed by either Epstein or his alleged ‘madam’, Ghislaine Maxwell, to engage in sex acts with the Duke of York.
Giuffre’s lawsuit comes almost two years to the day Epstein, 66, was found dead, hanged in a cell, awaiting trial for conspiracy and child sex trafficking charges.
Andrew, 61, has repeatedly and vehemently denied any allegations he had sexual contact with his accuser. He even told the BBC at the time that he had no recollection of meeting his accuser.
Giuffre’s lawsuit comes just days before the expiration date of a New York state law that allows alleged victims of sexual abuse as children to file civil claims.
She has accused the Duke of sleeping with her in New York, Epstein’s private U.S Virgin Island and Maxwell’s London home.
Of the New York allegation her suit states: “During this encounter, Maxwell forced Plaintiff, a child, and another victim to sit on Prince Andrew’s lap as Prince Andrew touched her. During his visit to New York, Prince Andrew forced Plaintiff to engage in sex acts against her will,” the suit states.
“On another occasion, Prince Andrew sexually abused Plaintiff on Epstein’s private island in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Little St. James,” it adds.
Boies wrote in the suit Guiffre “feared death or physical injury to herself” if she disobeyed Epstein and Maxwell’s orders.
The mum-of-two, who now lives in Australia, is seeking compensation and punitive damages over the allegations.
In a statement, she said: “I am holding Prince Andrew accountable for what he did to me. The powerful and the rich are not exempt from being held responsible for their actions.