London’s Metropolitan Police (Met of Scotland Yard) on Friday ruled out an investigation into allegations against Prince Andrew contained in court documents released in the United States, despite receiving a complaint yesterday from Britain’s anti-government monarchy organization Republic.

“We are aware of the disclosure of court documents relating to Jeffrey Epstein,” a police spokesperson said, referring to the man known to Andrés and accused of trafficking and sexual abuse of minors, who committed suicide in prison in 2019 before being tried. .

“As with any matter, if new and relevant information is presented to us, we will evaluate it,” said the source, who confirmed that, as things stand, “no investigation has been initiated.”

Who was Jeffrey Epstein, the American businessman accused of pedophilia

The documents released Wednesday and Thursday by a New York court are part of a defamation lawsuit filed in 2015 by Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein’s top whistleblowers, against his ex-lover and partner, British heiress Ghislaine Maxwell, currently sentenced to 20 years in prison for aiding her sexually abused minors.

Allegations against Prince Andrew, including allegedly groping a woman’s breast during a meeting with a doll version of the prince and claims that he sexually assaulted Virginia Giuffre when she was 17, have come to light again this week with the revelation of 1,200 pages by an American newspaper. court.

famous names

The files detail Epstein’s ties, some of which are already known, to prominent figures such as former US President Bill Clinton and Prince Andrew, the second son of Queen Elizabeth II, with whom Giuffre reached a million-dollar deal in 2022 to not to consider his complaint. for sexual crimes when he was a minor should be tried.

Republic, directed by Graham Smith, this Friday deplored the Met’s decision, saying it had investigated similar allegations against other celebrities on other occasions.

“The Metropolitan Police must open an investigation. How else can victims have confidence in the justice system as a whole and how can citizens have confidence in the rule of law?,” he said in a statement.

“Inaction would exacerbate an already serious problem in which victims of sexist violence are unwilling to report crimes” and “embolden perpetrators in the knowledge that police will not take action against the powerful,” the note adds.

Prince Andrew, who denies Giuffre’s accusations that he abused her three times at age 17, withdrew from public life in 2020 after his connection to Epstein became public and his mother, Elizabeth II, married him in January deprived of honor. 2022. (JO)