The Duke of York has publicly spoken for the first time about the sexual allegation claims against him by a US woman who says she was forced to have underage sex with him.
Speaking at the World Economic Forum reception in Davos, Switzerland, the Prince “reiterated” the denials already issued by Buckingham Palace.
“I just wish to reiterate and to reaffirm the statements that have already been made on my behalf by Buckingham Palace,” he said.
“My focus is on my work and this evening’s reception allows me to tell you about just a couple of the initiatives that I have founded and am passionate about.”
Virginia Roberts, the woman at the centre of the scandal, says she was forced to have sex with Prince Andrew three times in 2001 when she was 17.
At the time, she was employed by financier Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted sex offender, who allegedly employed her as a “sex slave”. On one occasion she claims she was paid $15,000 to sleep with the Prince.
Her legal team has now taken further action, filing legal documents to a court in Florida in relation to the allegations.
So far, the Palace has issued two statements “emphatically” denying the claims, saying that “Any suggestion of impropriety with underage minors is categorically untrue.”
“It is emphatically denied that the Duke of York had any form of sexual contact or relationship with Virginia Roberts. Any claim to the contrary is false and without foundation.”
Prince Andrew’s ex-wife Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, has also spoken out in his defence. She initially defended his character from on holiday in Switzerland, saying: “He’s the best man there is.”
Fergie then took the extra step of passionately defending Andrew live on American television, labelling the allegations “salacious lies” and defending him as a “humongously good man” during an interview on the US Today show.
The allegations against Prince Andrew first came to light when evidence was submitted to a US court in a case involving Jeffrey Epstein.
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