Prince Andrew’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein is under renewed scrutiny after a former Russian model alleged that the disgraced financier once joked in New York that he wanted to ‘adopt’ the ex-prince into his ‘family’ during a visit in December 2010.
The news comes after years of damaging revelations about the friendship between Prince Andrew and Jeffrey Epstein, which ultimately cost the Duke of York his royal role, military titles and public life. Epstein, a convicted sex offender, died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. Andrew has consistently denied any wrongdoing, but his name has remained entangled with Epstein’s network and its alleged victims.
The Russian woman, who says she was part of Epstein’s world for about five years, recalled the atmosphere when Andrew visited Epstein’s Manhattan townhouse in late 2010. Speaking about that period, she described how the prince reportedly blended easily into what Epstein liked to call his ‘family,’ a term that, in her account, referred to the circle of young women and associates around him rather than blood relatives.
‘With Andrew it was very informal, like family,’ she said, according to the report. ‘[Jeffrey Epstein] even used to say; ‘We should adopt Andrew into our family.’ Andrew was so nice, he fit in so well. But everything felt very family-like.’
How Prince Andrew And Jeffrey Epstein Looked To Each Other
The model’s account goes to the heart of one of the more uncomfortable questions surrounding Prince Andrew and Jeffrey Epstein.
However much Andrew insists he was unaware of the darker side of Epstein’s life, his presence in that townhouse, in that company, gave Epstein exactly what he craved most; validation from the establishment.
The woman, who says she appeared far younger than she was at the time, underlined the imbalance. ‘Everyone thought I was a teenager altogether; I look very young,’ she said. ‘So, what were we all doing there? And if he [Andrew] didn’t have any such questions, that’s strange.’
Her reflection is blunt, and it is difficult to dismiss. If her recollection is accurate, she is describing a British prince joking and relaxing in a house that, to her, already felt deeply abnormal.
‘At the time, he [Andrew] seemed just so cool, so pleasant, but in fact, people of his level legitimised someone like Jeffrey Epstein,’ she continued. ‘And if a British prince is a guest at such a person’s house, and you’re like a girl from nowhere… who am I to judge someone like JE, when the British prince himself visits his house, jokes around?’
Prince Andrew, Jeffrey Epstein And The Price Of Association
The price of that association has been high. The former Duke of York was stripped of his remaining royal titles and patronages by King Charles, with reports placing that decision in October last year. That formal break followed his earlier withdrawal from public duties and the out-of-court settlement he reached in the civil case brought by Virginia Giuffre, which he settled without admitting liability.
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, as he is now more commonly referred to in these legal contexts, was arrested by Windsor police on 19 February.
He is alleged to have shared confidential travel documents with Epstein while serving as the UK’s trade envoy between 2001 and 2011, including details of trips to Singapore, Vietnam, China and Hong Kong. He was held in custody for 11 hours before being taken back to his current home, Wood Farm on the Sandringham Estate.
What is clearer is the personal fallout. Royal biographer Andrew Lownie told the Daily Express that the ex-prince is now ‘stuck’ at Wood Farm after being evicted from his long-time Windsor residence, Royal Lodge, by King Charles, who is 77. ‘I hear he’s not even allowed to go out the front door to go [horseback] riding,’ Lownie said, painting a picture of a man sidelined in his own family.
David Dyson
‘He used to go out [horseback] riding. He can’t play golf but he watches videos,’ Lownie added. ‘He’s always been a bit of a couch potato, and he is just doing exactly the same.’
In the end, that may be what stings most for Andrew. Not just the headlines about Jeffrey Epstein, the legal jeopardy or the lost titles, but the lingering impression left by stories like the Russian model’s; that a British prince did not simply know Epstein, but helped make him look respectable.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.ibtimes.co.uk ’
