FORMER prince Andrew has again been drawn into the Jeffrey Epstein scandal after the US Justice Department released a new batch of files, prompting prime minister Keir Starmer to say the disgraced royal should testify in the United States.
Asked on Saturday whether King Charles’s brother should answer questions from US lawmakers about the late American sex offender’s crimes, Starmer replied “yes” as he wrapped up an official visit to China and Japan.
“I’ve always said anybody that [has] got information should be prepared to share that information in whatever form they are asked to do that,” Starmer told reporters.
“Because you can’t be victims-centered if you are not prepared to do that,” he added, saying Epstein’s victims “have to be the first priority”.
The comments followed the release on Friday of new Epstein files, which included photographs of Andrew and emails exchanged between him and Epstein in 2010, two years after the financier pleaded guilty in Florida to soliciting a minor for prostitution.
Several undated photographs show Andrew kneeling on all fours over an unidentified woman lying on the floor. Both are clothed. No context is provided for the images, and it is unclear where and when they were taken. One image appears to show him touching her abdomen, while another shows him crouching over her and looking directly into the camera.
The emails show Epstein proposing that Andrew have dinner in London with a “beautiful, trustworthy” 26-year-old Russian woman. In the exchanges, Epstein described her as “26, Russian, clevere [clever] beautiful, trustworthy” and said he had given her the prince’s email address.
Andrew later replied that he “would be delighted to see her”. It is unclear whether any meeting took place.
In later messages, Epstein contacted Andrew while in London, saying they needed to have some “private time”. Andrew replied that they could “have dinner at Buckingham Palace and lots of privacy”, later adding “come with whomever”.
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly the Duke of York, has long faced scrutiny over his links to Epstein, who died by suicide in jail in 2019 while facing sex trafficking charges.
The 65-year-old son of the late Queen Elizabeth II has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. He stepped back from royal duties in 2019 following public criticism over his association with Epstein.
In October last year, King Charles stripped Andrew of his royal titles and honours after Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre detailed claims against him in a posthumous memoir.
Giuffre, a US and Australian citizen who took her own life last year, alleged she was trafficked by Epstein to have sex with Andrew three times, including twice when she was 17.
After she filed a lawsuit against him, Andrew paid a multi-million-pound settlement in 2022 without making any admission of guilt.
The latest disclosures also come as Andrew is reported to be preparing to leave his 30-room mansion on the Windsor estate after being asked to do so by the king. He was photographed on Saturday driving on the estate, west of London, according to UK media.
In a 2019 BBC interview, Andrew said he had cut ties with Epstein after December 2010, but later court documents showed that the two continued to communicate.
US lawmakers and investigators have for years sought to question Andrew about his association with Epstein. Last November, 16 Democratic members of Congress signed a letter requesting that he take part in a “transcribed interview” with the House of Representatives oversight committee investigating Epstein.
Andrew has given no public indication that he is willing to testify.
Starmer had previously said that Andrew testifying was a “decision for him”. Asked on Saturday whether Andrew should apologise for his friendship with Epstein, the prime minister said it was “a matter for Andrew”.
(With inputs from agencies)
