H

E’S no stranger to

scandal.Andallega-

tionsofinfidelity,tax

evasionandexploiting

hispositionofprivilege

havedoggedhimove

thedecades.Youdon’

getnicknamessucha

RandyAndyandAirmilesAndybypot

teringaroundathomeinyourcardi.

YetsomehowPrinceAndrewwriggl

outofeverytightspot,largelythanks

thefacthismotherhasshieldedh

second– andfavourite– sonbehindh

formidablebarrierforyears.

RecentlyQueenElizabethhasbeen

it againwhenAndrewmadeworldhea

linesafterconvictedsexoffenderJeffr

Epsteinhangedhimselfina NewYorkj

cell,shortlybeforedetailswerereleas

of the sex slave ring he allegedlyra

And Andrew was friends with Epstein

there are several pictures to proveit.

Yet Andrew accompanied his mom

church while the scandal erupted– th

Buckingham Palace started issuing

statements professing his innocence.

“HisRoyalHighnessdeplorestheex-

ploitationofanyhumanbe-

ing,andthesuggestionhe’d

condone,participateinor

encouragesuchbehaviour

isabhorrent,”themostre-

centonesaid.

Andthepalaceissuesnostatement

withoutthequeen’ssay-so.

YetAndrewmustsurelyberuingthe

dayhemetJeffreyEpstein.Thistime,

insiderssay,hisreputationcouldwell

havebeensulliedbeyondrepair.

T

HE59-year-oldDukeofYork

wasonholidaywithhisex-

wife,SarahFerguson(also59),

whenthelatestrevelations

raisedtheirdamaginghead.

AndrewoncehostedEpstein

atBalmoralCastle– whileHerMajesty

g

e

r

t

s

t-

led

sto

her

her

nat

ad-

ffrey

jail

sed

an.

n–

mto

hen

THE PRINCE

AND THE

PERVERT

Prince Andrew is

feeling the heat over

his long friendship

with convicted

sex offender

Jeffrey Epstein

COMPILED BY NICI DE WET

New York, he returned the favour on oc-

casion. In 2000 Epstein and Maxwell

were guests at the Dance of the Decades,

an extravagant party held at Windsor

Castle and hosted by the queen to mark

Andrew’s 40th, Princess Anne’s 50th,

Princess Margaret’s 70th and Prince

William’s 18th birthdays.

Of course, whether Andrew knew what

his friend was up to behind closed doors

isn’t known – but the prince was forced

to defend himself after a photo emerged

ofhimwithhisarmaroundEpstein’s

allegedsexslaveVirginiaGiuffre(now

35)atGhislaine’sLondonhomein 2001

was believed to be in residence, no less

• in mid-1999. According to a young
  woman who accompanied the American
  on the trip, Andrew personally wel-
  comed them to the 52-bedroom Scottish
  castle. “He was really nice; he was very
  polite,” she told the UK’s Daily Mail,
  speaking on condition of anonymity.
  Shewasa young model at the time and
  was giving Epstein sexual
  favours.
  She says the group stayed
  overnight before spending
  the following day beingen-
  tertained on the grounds
  “WhywasI really there? Did he [Epstein]
  reallyenjoymy company that muchor
  wasI beingprepped to end up being
  sentoutlikea gift to some people?”she
  ponders.
  Atthispoint Epstein was allegedly
  recruitinggirls – some as young as 14 –
  topimpoutto his friends or to use forhis
  owndesiresat one of his many homes.
  Epsteinand Andrew hit it off after
  beingintroduced by Epstein’s then-girl
  friendGhislaine Maxwell in the 1990s.
  WhileAndrew was often spottedat
  swankydinner parties in Manhattan
  . 35 )atGhislainesLondonhomein 2001.
  ] r g e y – s r - t ,

‘He was really

nice; he was

very polite’

14 | 29 AUGUST 2019 you.co.za^