A settlement reached its dramatic climax last week in the sex trafficking case involving a senior member of the Royal Family and the victim who was 17 at the time of the allegations.
The claimant, Virginia Giuffre who had been pursuing Prince Andrew through the US civil courts since August 2021 citing battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress, settled with his lawyers for an undisclosed sum last week.
Rumours are circulating that the amount is anywhere between £7-14million.
It is unsure if this amount includes Giuffre’s legal fees which Andrew will be expected to cover.
Despite Andrew submitting documents to the courts in January 2022 stating he was not a co-conspirator of his now deceased and former friend Jeffrey Epstein, he demanded a jury trial and listed several reasons why he and his lawyers believed Giuffre’s case should not stand.
These reasons included a settlement unsealed on 3 January 2022 disclosing a payment of $500,000 in 2009 from Epstein.
Andrew’s legal team argued in court papers that this payout shielded him from Giuffre’s lawsuit.
The preceding judge, Lewis Kaplan, disagreed and ordered Andrew to take the stand in March this year.
The full details of the settlement are not disclosed but Andrew has agreed to make a “substantial donation” to a charity supporting victims’ rights, and has accepted that Giuffre “suffered as an established victim of abuse”.
He makes no admission of liability.
In the document he also commends Giuffre’s bravery and regrets his association with Epstein, stating that he will demonstrate this “by supporting the fight against the evils of sex trafficking, and by supporting its victims”.
It is curious that Andrew has now agreed to pay millions of pounds to a woman he previously claimed he had never met in the now infamous BBC Newsnight interview with Emily Maitlis.
The document outlines how Giuffre will dismiss the case once she receives the settlement.
The settlement brings an end to the alleged disgraceful acts of the prince who has since been stripped of his HRH title as well as his military titles and charity patronages.
What comes next for Andrew is sheer speculation.
With some sources claiming he wants to work with women’s charities, it is highly unlikely those charities would want to work with him.
With Her Majesty the Queen’s platinum jubilee celebrations taking place later this year, it is highly likely that Andrew will be barred from attending any public function as a representative of the Royal Family.
To allow her rumoured favourite son to stand beside her on her platinum anniversary, a symbol of this country’s and the world’s most famous Royal Family, would not go down with the British public.
It is likely that Andrew will be banished to spend his days at Windsor Castle with his former wife and still closest ally Sarah Ferguson, reminiscing on his former life.
Nevertheless, whilst Andrew ponders his next move, the life he will no doubt lead is more comfortable than the lives of the women who were trafficked by Epstein, his former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell, and all the alleged men they sourced for sexual encounters with young and often vulnerable women.
