Virginia Giuffre dead: Prince Andrew and Jeffrey Epstein accuser dies aged 41 just weeks after troubling Instagram posts
VIRGINIA Giuffre has died by suicide at the age of 41, her family has confirmed.
The mum-of-three, who was sex trafficked by Jeffrey Epstein and accused Prince Andrew of sexually abusing her when she was 17, is said to have died at her home in Western Australia last night.
Her family told NBC News: “It is with utterly broken hearts that we announce that Virginia passed away last night at her farm in Western Australia.
“She lost her life to suicide, after being a lifelong victim of sexual abuse and sex trafficking.”
They added: “Virginia was a fierce warrior in the fight against sexual abuse and sex trafficking. She was the light that lifted so many survivors.
“In the end, the toll of abuse is so heavy that it became unbearable for Virginia to handle its weight.”
It comes just weeks after Virginia shared a worrying photo of herself, covered in bruises, from hospital.
She had a minor car crash with a school bus, and claimed she had just four days to live.
Virginia sued Prince Andrew in 2021, claiming she was trafficked and forced to have sex with the Duke on three occasions when she was a teen.
It was the first time she had brought action against him after going public with the allegations in 2011.
She claimed she was trafficked and forced to have sex with the Andrew for the first time at Maxwell’s house in London after a night out at the club Tramp.
Virginia also claimed she was forced to have sex with the Duke on at least two further occasions by Maxwell and Epstein.
Her legal team argued she was a “frightened, vulnerable child with no one there to protect her” when she was allegedly abused by Andrew, saying “no person, whether President or Prince, is above the law”.
She claimed she feared for her life when she was allegedly forced to have sex with Andrew, who is accused of having been aware of her age and status as a “sex-trafficking victim”.
The Duke has ignored repeated calls to tell US authorities what he knows about paedo Epstein’s criminal behaviour.
In his notorious Newsnight interview five years ago, Andrew vowed to help the probe into Epstein and his warped madam Maxwell.
It is hoped Andrew could unknowingly hold information that could lead investigators to the “last piece of the jigsaw” to expose the full extent of the couple’s twisted “sexual pyramid scheme“.
But the royal has remained silent – and claimed he knew nothing of Epstein’s vile crimes despite their friendship.
In his Newsnight interview, Andrew claimed he severed ties with Epstein in December 2010.
He said he didn’t see or speak to Epstein after they were pictured strolling through Central Park in New York City shortly after the paedo was released from jail for child sex offences.
But new emails between the pair emerged earlier this year from February 2011, two months after Andrew claimed they had ceased contact.
In one, Andrew wrote: “Keep in close touch and we’ll play some more soon.”
Andrew has denied any wrongdoing and has denied allegations made against him.
Epstein took his own life in jail while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges in 2019.
Maxwell is serving a 20-year prison sentence for conspiring with him to sexually abuse minors.
Who was Virginia Giuffre?
VIRGINIA Roberts - later Virginia Giuffre, 41, was an American-Australian campaigner and a prominent victim of the sex trafficking ring of Jeffrey Epstein.
She made claims against Prince Andrew, the Duke of York, as well as Brit socialite Ghislaine Maxwell – Jeffrey Epstein’s ex-lover.
Giuffre alleged in court documents that she was procured by Maxwell, 63, the daughter of disgraced tycoon Robert Maxwell, as a teenage “sex slave” for Epstein.
She released a manuscript just hours before Epstein’s death, which added to more than 2,000 documents of a lawsuit pending against the former financier and his pals.
The legal documents were released in a defamation case involving Giuffre, who has claimed in court documents that Prince Andrew slept with her three times.
In 2019, Virginia Roberts claimed that she had sex with Prince Andrew in a toilet when she was 17, after a night where he had allegedly been plying her with vodka in a posh London club.
On February 15, 2022, it was announced that Prince Andrew settled the lawsuit – sparing him a humiliating court battle.
More to follow… For the latest news on this story keep checking back at The Sun Online
Thesun.co.uk is your go-to destination for the best celebrity news, real-life stories, jaw-dropping pictures and must-see video.
Like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/thesun and follow us from our main Twitter account at @TheSun.
