Prince Andrew latest: Royal stripped of title as Virginia Giuffre’s family says she ‘brought down a prince’

Late monarch’s middle child has seen his reputation damaged over his friendship with paedophile Jeffrey Epstein and a car crash BBC interview:

The family of Virginia Giuffre, who said she was trafficked and forced to have sex with Andrew, say Andrew’s being stripped of his title and home is a victory for Ms Giuffre.

“Today, an ordinary American girl from an ordinary American family brought down a British prince with her truth and extraordinary courage,” they said.

“Virginia Roberts Giuffre, our sister, a child when she was sexually assaulted by Andrew, never stopped fighting for accountability for what had happened to her and countless other survivors like her.

“Today, she declares a victory.

“We, her family, along with her survivor sisters, continue Virginia’s battle and will not rest until the same accountability applies to all of her abusers and abetters, connected to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.”

Ms Giuffre, who died by suicide in April, brought a civil claim against Andrew.

King Charles has formally stripped Prince Andrew of all his royal titles and the “His Royal Highness” style, forcing him to vacate Royal Lodge and live as a private citizen, Andrew Mountbatten Windsor.

The move follows years of scandal over his ties to Jeffrey Epstein and sexual assault allegations by Virginia Giuffre, who died earlier this year.

Giuffre’s family hailed the decision, saying she “brought down a British prince with her truth and extraordinary courage”.

Her lawyer called it a historic “tipping point” for survivors of abuse.

The family said she “never stopped fighting for accountability for what had happened to her and countless other survivors like her”.

“Today, she declares a victory. We, her family, along with her survivor sisters, continue Virginia’s battle and will not rest until the same accountability applies to all of her abusers and abetters, connected to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.”

Andrew, 65, has long denied Virginia Giuffre’s claims, but stepped down from royal duties after a disastrous 2019 BBC interview in which he attempted to deny her allegations.

Andrew paid millions in an out-of-court settlement in 2022 after she filed a civil suit against him in New York.

While he did not admit wrongdoing, he acknowledged her suffering as a victim of sex trafficking.

Andrew will receive an “appropriate” private provision from the King, it is understood.

Any other sources of income will be a matter for the former duke.

In 2021 a royal finance expert said: “Prince Andrew’s finances are shrouded in a pea soup of impenetrability.”

Andrew’s friendship and association with paedophile Jeffrey Epstein had been known for years, but it was the publication this month of Virginia Giuffre’s posthumous memoir, Nobody’s Girl, that reignited public anger and brought matters to a head.

In it, she said she suffered nightmares of ‘greedy men on top of her’ years after the abuse:

Democratic Congressman Suhas Subramanyam, who has previously called for Andrew to testify before a US Congressional committee about his links to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell to “clear his name”, has again urged Andrew to give evidence.

He said: “It’s clear that Prince Andrew has information about Epstein’s crimes and he must do more than just give up titles or hide from the public spotlight.

“He owes it to the victims to share everything he knows about Epstein’s criminal operation and come before the Oversight Committee.

“Regardless, we will continue to pursue the files and all the evidence, no matter how rich and powerful the perpetrators involved.”

Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said it must have been “very difficult” for the King to take the steps against his sibling, but that it was right for the public not to tolerate sexual abuse allegations.

Speaking on an LBC Radio phone-in, she said: “I’ve been following this story more about a family. It’s a very sad state of affairs.

“I think that the King has clearly felt that this is the right decision for the royal family. It must have been a very difficult thing for him to have done. I mean, having to do that to your own brother.

“But the standards and expectations in society now are very high. People expect to see the very highest levels of integrity.

“And I’m afraid the whole Jeffrey Epstein saga and everyone it has touched, from Prince Andrew to Peter Mandelson, has just shown that the public has no truck whatsoever with any kind of sexual abuse, sexual offences, especially of minors. And I think that that’s quite right.”