Details about the settlement of Prince Andrew's sex assault case are surfacing
Just days after it was announced that Prince Andrew and Virginia Giuffre have reached a financial settlement over her sexual abuse claim, it has been reported that the agreement also includes a gagging clause.
This means that Prince Andrew can no longer deny that he raped Virginia or repeat his claim that he has no recollection of meeting her.
The settlement is said be worth as much as £12 million, with £10 million going directly to Virginia and £2 million to her sex trafficking charity.
The gagging clause stipulates that neither side can talk about the case or the financial deal. However, it’s thought this rule will be in place for just a few months, until the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations are over.
Once the ban has been lifted, Virginia will be free to open up about her side of the story .
Virginia Giuffre, formerly Roberts, has reported that she was brought to the UK at 17 to have sex with Prince Andrew. She said she was introduced to the royal by Ghislaine Maxwell, who was recently convicted for sex trafficking charges and aiding sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who killed himself in prison while being held on bail in 2019.
Prince Andrew, who was friends with Epistein, has said he “regrets” his “association” with him. The court settlement statement read:
"Prince Andrew regrets his association with Epstein, and commends the bravery of Ms. Giuffre and other survivors in standing up for themselves and others. He pledges to demonstrate his regret for his association with Epstein by supporting the fight against the evils of sex trafficking, and by supporting its victims."
However, when asked if he regretted “the whole friendship” with Epstein in his 2019, the Duke of York said he did not. “The reason being is that the people that I met and the opportunities that I was given to learn either by him or because of him were actually very useful,” he said.
We will continue to update this story.
