LONDON — Britain’s Metropolitan Police are “actively looking” into reports that Prince Andrew tried to obtain personal information about his accuser Virginia Giuffre, a police spokesman told NBC News on Sunday.
Giuffre, who died by suicide in April at the age of 41, had alleged that disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein passed it on to his powerful friends, including Andrew, against whom she filed a lawsuit in 2021 alleging that he sexually assaulted her when she was 17 years old.
The British newspaper Mail on Sunday reported that Andrew asked his police protection officer to investigate Geoffrey Before posting a photo in February 2011, showing Andrew with his arm around Giuffre. The newspaper cited an email that was said to contain a request from Andrew, which NBC News had not seen.
The British newspaper The Sunday Telegraph also claimed that Andrew “sought to dig up dirt” on Geoffrey.
A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: “We are aware of the media reports and are actively looking into the allegations made.”
Prince Andrew has repeatedly denied that the photo he took with Giuffre was real, and has denied any wrongdoing related to Epstein. He did not comment on the newspaper’s reporting and did not immediately respond to NBC News’ request for comment.
A series of stories about Prince Andrew’s association with Epstein have dogged King Charles III’s younger brother for six years, and the scandal has become one of the most damaging in recent British royal history.
The reports came two days after Andrew announced he would stop using his royal titles, including Duke of York, after facing new questions about his friendship with Epstein.
He said in a statement that the decision was made “after discussion with the King and my immediate and wider family,” after concluding that “the continuing accusations against me distract from the work of His Majesty the King and the Royal Family.”
“As I said previously, I strongly deny the accusations against me,” Andrew said.
His ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, will no longer be known as the Duchess of York.
Andrew stepped back from active royal duties in 2019 as controversy escalated over his association with Epstein. He settled with Giuffre for an undisclosed sum in 2022 without admitting any wrongdoing.