Virginia Giuffre was one of the most prominent accusers connected to Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking network and became a central figure in the global reckoning surrounding his crimes. In 2019, she gave a widely watched BBC interview alleging that she had been trafficked by Epstein as a teenager and forced to have sex with Prince Andrew on multiple occasions in the early 2000s — claims Andrew has consistently denied.
In February 2022, Prince Andrew agreed to settle Giuffre’s civil sexual assault lawsuit without admitting liability, according to the Washington Post. Court documents stated that he would make a substantial donation to Giuffre’s charity supporting victims’ rights and acknowledged that she had suffered as a victim of abuse and from public attacks. The financial terms of the settlement were not disclosed.
Giuffre later continued advocating for survivors of sex trafficking and abuse. She died by suicide in April 2025 at age 41. Learn more about her below.
“I’m calling BS on this, because that’s what it is.”
Prince Andrew says he has no recollection of meeting Virginia Giuffre, nor of any photo being taken with her and he emphatically denies he had any form of sexual contact or relationship with her. pic.twitter.com/aqQ76kpPHI
— BBC Panorama (@BBCPanorama) December 2, 2019
In her public statements and 2019 BBC interview, Virginia alleged that she met Prince Andrew through Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell while she was being trafficked as a teenager. Epstein owned multiple properties, including homes in New York, London and the U.S. Virgin Islands, where Giuffre said she was taken during the period she alleges the abuse occurred.
Giuffre also claimed she was made to dance with Andrew at a London nightclub before one of the alleged encounters. Describing the experience, she said it was “horrible” and alleged that he was sweating heavily while they danced. Prince Andrew has denied all allegations, and Epstein died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges. “It was horrible, and this guy was sweating all over me, his sweat was like it was raining,” she said.
In a December 2019 interview with the BBC, Giuffre alleged that she was forced to have sex with Prince Andrew when she was 17, describing the first alleged encounter as “quick and disgusting.” She said the experience left her feeling “ashamed and dirty.”
Giuffre claimed she was being trafficked by Jeffrey Epstein at the time and alleged that Ghislaine Maxwell instructed her to “do for Andrew what I do for Jeffrey.” Prince Andrew has repeatedly denied the allegations. In 2022, he reached a civil settlement with Giuffre without admitting liability.
