Prince Andrew’s relationship with American financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who was found dead in his prison cell over the weekend while facing federal charges for sex trafficking, is once again raising questions.
In the past, Buckingham Palace has been forced to deny allegations that the Duke of York had sexual encounters with Virginia Roberts Giuffre, a then-17-year-old girl who alleged in court documents that Epstein had coerced her into “sexual relations” with himself and Andrew on multiple occasions (per The Guardian).
Now, it has been revealed that court documents which have recently been unsealed as part of the Epstein investigation include another allegation against Prince Andrew by a woman who claims Queen Elizabeth’s son touched her breast.
In a deposition given by Johanna Sjoberg, which was part of a 2015 defamation lawsuit filed by Virginia Roberts Giuffre against Epstein’s associate, Sjoberg said: “I just remember someone suggesting a photo, and they told us to go get on the couch. And so Andrew and Virginia sat on the couch, and they put the puppet, the puppet on her lap. And so then I sat on Andrew’s lap, and I believe on my own volition, and they took the puppet’s hands and put it on Virginia’s breast, and so Andrew put his on mine.”
In response to the new allegations, Buckingham Palace released a statement to NBC News calling the claims “categorically untrue.”
“This relates to proceedings in the United States, to which The Duke of York is not a party. Any suggestion of impropriety with underage minors is categorically untrue,” the statement, which is the same as the palace released upon Epstein’s death, reads in full.