Prince Andrew maintained contact with the late financier Jeffrey Epstein for several months after publicly stating he had severed ties in 2010, according to recently disclosed court documents.
Despite denying any communication with Epstein after that date, revealed emails challenge his claims, according to a report from Fox Business.
The emails were introduced as evidence in a lawsuit against JPMorgan by the U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Justice.
The international banking conglomerate is accused of continuing to do business with Epstein for years while he ran a s*x trafficking ring out of his private island in the Virgin Islands according to a Top Class Actions report.
JPMorgan is further accused of failing to report “financial signs” of Epstein’s illegal activities, according to Law360.
The Virgin Islands lawsuit seeks $150 million in civil penalties, plus another $40 million in profits they argue JPMorgan made while working with Epstein. The convicted s*x offender died in August 2019 in a Manhattan jail.
Emails presented by the island’s DOJ indicate Prince Andrew had been in communication with Epstein’s help between 2009 and 2011 and had even arranged meetings during that time.
That would seem to contradict claims by Prince Andrew made during a BBC interview he conducted in an attempt to clear his name.
The royal family member told BBC he stopped communicating with Epstein after his 2006 conviction for s*xually assaulting a minor. His BBC performance was widely panned and he ended up stepping down from royal duties.
Epstein allegedly told the Duke of York that former Barclays CEO Jes Staley would be in London in April 2010, and the two should meet, according to the Fox report.
In another September 2010 email, Epstein reportedly wrote Staley, “About to connect with Andrew.”
After the interview, Prince Andrew faced legal challenges from Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein’s victims in a lawsuit alleging the prince s*xually assaulted her while she was underage.
That case was settled out of court, as reported by CNBC. Virginia Giuffre claimed that the assaults occurred while Prince Andrew was under the influence of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.
Following the settlement, the Duke of York agreed to pay an undisclosed sum and his military titles and royal family honorifics were revoked. He also pledged a significant donation to Giuffre’s charity supporting victims.
