The family of one of Jeffrey Epstein’s most prominent survivors of sexual assault has welcomed Prince Andrew’s announcement that he will stop using his royal titles, including Duke of York.
The family of Virginia Roberts Giuffre, who died by suicide in April at the age of 41, said in a statement: “Prince Andrew’s decision to relinquish his titles is a vindication for our sister and survivors everywhere.”
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.
Giuffre claimed that Epstein trafficked her to his powerful friends, including Andrew, against whom she filed a lawsuit in 2021 alleging that Andrew sexually assaulted her when she was 17 years old.
Andrew, who denies having sex with Giuffre and any wrongdoing linked to Epstein, stepped back from active royal duties in 2019 as controversy over his association with Epstein escalated. He agreed to settle the lawsuit with Giuffre for an undisclosed sum in 2022 without admitting any wrongdoing.
Friday’s announcement came after the Mail on Sunday and Sun on Sunday newspapers published an email, which has not been verified by NBC News, that Andrew is said to have sent to Epstein in 2011, after a photo was published showing Andrew with his arm around Giuffre, accompanied by Ghislaine Maxwell.
The palace has not commented on the reported email, which the newspapers say told Epstein “we are in this together” and concluded “we will play more soon.”
The email was particularly damaging because it appeared to contradict his previous comments in a 2019 BBC interview, in which he said he stopped communicating with Epstein after his visit in New York in 2010, the previous year.
“This was the real final nail in Andrew’s coffin because it makes him look, in black and white, like a liar,” NBC News royal commentator Daisy McAndrew said.
“He’s now persona non grata,” McAndrew said. He added: “He will not be welcomed at any royal events and will have to keep a low profile for what he has done so far.”
Andrew did not respond to email requests for comment, but has repeatedly denied that his photo with Giuffre is real.
In their statement, Geoffrey’s family urged King Charles to “remove the title of prince.”
McAndrew said stripping Andrew of his princely title would require a legal change, “which is highly unlikely.”
Andrew’s decision to stop using his titles was made “following discussion with the King and my immediate and wider family,” Andrew said in a statement on Friday.
“As I said previously, I strongly deny the accusations against me,” Andrew said.