Jeffrey Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre’s lawyers will reportedly depose Prince Andrew at a “neutral” location in London in March as a part of the ongoing civil litigation against the British Royal, a leading broadsheet in the UK has claimed.
On Saturday, Britain’s Daily Telegraph claimed that Prince Andrew will be deposed in person by the high-profile legal team representing Virginia Roberts Giuffre, who is suing the Duke in a civil court in New York for allegedly sexually assaulting her when she was seventeen.
Giuffre has claimed that while she was being trafficked by deceased peadophile Jeffrey Epstein and convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell, she was forced into unwanted sexual encounters with Prince Andrew in London, New York, and Epstein’s infamous Carribean island.
For his part, Prince Andrew has steadfastly denied the charges, and has even gone on to allege that Giuffre is suffering from “false memories“.
According to The Telegraph, Andrew will interviewed by Boies Schiller Flexner lawyers David Boies and Sigrid McCawley, who are representing Giuffre in her civil lawsuit against the Duke of York. The broadsheet said that the deposition is expected to be held on March 10th at a “neutral” location in London and will span approximately two days.
Mr Boies, an esteemed lawyer based in New York City, told the publication last week: “We’re looking forward to confronting Prince Andrew with his denials and attempts to blame Ms Giuffre for her own abuse, both at the deposition and the trial.”
The high-profile attourney added that Giuffre would be willing to come to an out of court agreement with Prince Andrew but said that it would only be an option if “you had a settlement that was large enough to be, in effect, a vindication.”
Should the Duke of York agree to a settlement, the details of the deposition could still be made public, the paper claimed.
American attourney, John Burke of the Legis Chambers in London commented that the Duke and is legal team “should be worried” about the impending deposition as it could open to the door to perjury charges should Andrew contradict his public statements on the matter.
“You are under oath,” he told the broadsheet. “That person can ask you anything they want and you remain subject to the pains and penalties of perjury.
“It’s not a process designed for people like Prince Andrew because if (the Newsnight interview) is how he behaves in a controlled environment, his lawyer should worry about what he would do in this environment.
“They can’t stop it, they can’t unplug the light for the camera. You can only register an objection you can’t actually prevent the question from being asked. He cannot plead the Fifth (Amendment) or give no comment answers.”
Depsite Prince Andrew not facing criminal charges in the United States or the United Kingdom, he has been stripped of his military titles and patronages by the Queen in light of the ongoing controversey.
Follow Kurt Zindulka on Twitter here @KurtZindulka
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.