Princess Andrew accuser Virginia Giuffre commits sui.cide

The woman who accused Britains Prince Andrew and other powerful men of sexually exploiting her as a teenager trafficked by financier Jeffrey Epstein has died at age 41.  Virginia Giuffre died by suicide on Friday, April 25 at her farm in Western Australia, her publicist confirmed.Deeply loving, wise and funny, she was a beacon to other survivors and victims, said publicist Dini von Mueffling in a statement. She adored her children and many animals. She was always more concerned with me than with herself. I will miss her beyond words. It was the privilege of a lifetime to represent her. Giuffre, an American who lived in Australia for years, became an advocate for sex trafficking survivors after emerging as a central figure in the Epstein scandal.Epstein, a wealthy and well-connected financier, killed himself in August 2019 while awaiting trial on U.S. federal sex trafficking charges involving dozens of teenage girls and young women, some as young as 14. The charges came 14 years after police in Palm Beach, Florida, began investigating allegations of sexual abuse against him. That original investigation ended in an 18-month jail sentence for Epstein in Florida, the result of a secret plea deal that allowed him to avoid federal prosecution by pleading guilty to state-level charges of soliciting prostitution. He was released in 2009. Giuffre came forward publicly after that, stating that she had been a teenage spa attendant at Mar-a-Lago President Donald Trumps Palm Beach club when Epsteins girlfriend and associate, Ghislaine Maxwell, approached her in 2000. Giuffre said Maxwell hired her as a masseuse but she was soon pressured into becoming a sexual servant for Epstein and his associates. She said she was flown around the world to have sex with influential men, including Prince Andrew, when she was 17 and 18.  The men denied her allegations and questioned her credibility. Giuffre acknowledged changing some details of her story, including her age at the time she met Epstein. However, parts of her account were corroborated by documents, witness testimony, and photos including one of her with Prince Andrew, his arm around her bare waist, taken in Maxwells London townhouse. Giuffre stated in lawsuits that she had sex with Prince Andrew three times: in London in 2001, at Epsteins New York mansion when she was 17, and in the Virgin Islands when she was 18. Ghislaine said, I want you to do for him what you do for Epstein, Giuffre told NBC News Dateline in 2019. Prince Andrew denied the allegations and claimed he did not remember meeting Giuffre. His denials came under intense scrutiny after a 2019 BBC interview, during which he offered unusual rebuttals such as claiming a medical condition made him unable to sweat, countering Giuffres recollection of him sweating while they danced. The interview received widespread criticism for his lack of empathy. Shortly afterward, he stepped down from royal duties. In 2022, he reached a settlement with Giuffre, agreeing to an undisclosed payment and a donation to her charity. A statement acknowledged that Epstein was a sex trafficker and Giuffre an established victim of abuse. Giuffre filed additional lawsuits against Epstein and several others in his circle, settling some of them. In one case, she withdrew her claim against a prominent U.S. attorney, stating she may have mistaken him for someone else. Epsteins death ended the possibility of criminal prosecution for his accusers. Maxwell was convicted in 2021 on federal sex trafficking and conspiracy charges and sentenced to 20 years in prison. She denied responsibility for Epsteins actions. Prosecutors did not include Giuffres allegations in her trial, but Giuffre later described Maxwell in court as someone who opened the door to hell.  Born Virginia Roberts, Giuffre said she was sexually abused in childhood by a man known to her family. She ran away from home and later endured more abuse. In 2002, while in Thailand for massage training arranged by Epstein, she met her future husband. She married, moved to Australia, and started a family. In 2015, she founded the advocacy organization SOAR.  Giuffre was hospitalized recently after a serious accident, her publicist said last month. No details were provided about the date, location, or nature of the incident. A recent Instagram post, reportedly from Giuffre, claimed she had been in a car that was hit by a school bus and that her condition was critical. The post Princess Andrew accuser Virginia Giuffre commits sui.cide appeared first on Linda Ikeji Blog.