Andrew Mountbatten Windsor could leave the country to avoid the scandal in the UK, his biographer has claimed, after new emails from Jeffrey Epstein have been made public
New emails detailing the connection between convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and the former Prince Andrew have been made public, and the disgraced royal’s biographer believes them to be the “final nail in the coffin”.
Andrew was unceremoniously stripped of his royal titles and honours by King Charles due to his ties to the disgraced financier, with Buckingham Palace releasing a blistering statement throwing the monarch’s support behind “survivors of any and all forms of abuse”.
Andrew Mountbatten Windsor has also agreed to give up his long-term home of Royal Lodge, after it was revealed he has only paid a “peppercorn” rent to the Crown Estate for the lavish property since moving there over 20 years ago. The 30-room mansion became a source of public outcry as Andrew’s accuser Virginia Giuffre’s posthumous memoir was poised to be released, bringing the allegations of sexual assault she made against him back into the spotlight. Andrew has repeatedly and vehemently denied all claims against him.
Sources have since claimed that Andrew has been offered a palatial home in Abu Dhabi if he chooses to leave the UK, which would see him follow in the footsteps of another disgraced royal: King Juan Carlos I of Spain. As it stands, Andrew is understood to be moving to a property on King Charles’s vast private estate in Norfolk, Sandringham.
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Andrew Lownie – who penned an explosive biography of Andrew and his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, ‘Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York’, told the Mirror that the new Epstein emails “highlights the lies” Andrew has told about his friendship with Epstein.
Andrew previously claimed to have cut off contact with Epstein in 2010, but emails show that the pair remained in contact beyond that point. Equally, Epstein confirms in one email to a journalist that has emerged that Andrew did pose for a photograph with accuser Virginia Giuffre.
One now-infamous photo of Giuffre, Andrew, and Ghislaine Maxwell has been in the public domain for many years – though Andrew has disputed it’s authenticity and repeatedly said he does not recall the photo being taken. “Nobody can prove whether or not that photograph has been doctored but I don’t recollect that photograph ever being taken,” the disgraced royal told the BBC in 2019.
Epstein allegedly wrote in July 2011 to a journalist, “Yes she (Virginia) was on my plane, and yes she had her picture taken with Andrew, as many of my employees have.”
In Lownie’s opinion, “This new information dump is the nail in the coffin for Prince Andrew, highlighting the lies he has told about his association with Jeffrey Epstein.”
The biographer added that he thinks, “There is still much more to emerge but there can be no doubt now about how deeply involved [he was] with the convicted paedophile. Andrew needs to be investigated as a flight risk and his passport should be surrendered.”
He added: “I think there is a good chance Andrew would avoid any possible legal charges by going to Middle East like King Juan Carlos. That would certainly suit the Royal Family. If the authorities are serious about investigating him and holding him to account then his passport needs to be confiscated.”
The Sun reports that sources claim an offer of an “escape route” was made in the form of a new home in Abu Dhabi by the wealthy ruler Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. The sheikh is said to have offered “free use of a vast royal palace” in response to Andrew’s “kindness” as a trade envoy to the UK, a role he held until 2011.
Buckingham Palace has been contacted for comment.
