Prince Andrew broke his silence over his controversial connection to the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and his accusers. As his interview with Emily Maitlis on BBC Newsnight reportedly turned to be disastrous, his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, now got all the blame.
The Duchess of York allegedly convinced her ex-husband to give a TV interview and tell the truth about his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein, who took his own life while waiting for the trial of his sex-trafficking charges. According to Daily Mail Online, Sarah Ferguson, fondly called Fergie, encouraged and convinced Prince Andrew to tell it all.
Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie's mother felt like Prince Andrew should face the controversies and tell "his truth" to the public. A royal source even said that Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip's son heavily relies on Fergie. "She's been the prince's biggest champion, and he values her opinion and experience," the insider said.
When Prince Andrew had the chance to give an interview, Sarah Ferguson believed it was the best way to clear his name while providing the public a look of his real self. The talk let him tackle all the negative news about him, instead of leaving it unanswered. It also gave him the ability to present his side of the story.
The scandal has been damaging Prince Andrew's reputation for the past six months. Hence, Sarah feels he has to get ahead of the issue to redeem himself and clean his public image. She backs him as fully as possible. Although it is unusual for the prince to go in front of the camera, the issues surrounding him today are quite exceptional and extraordinary.
Aside from Prince Andrew's friendship with Jeffrey Epstein, one of the latter's accusers, Virginia Roberts, claimed that she was forced to sleep with the duke three times from 1999 to 2002, per New Idea. The ordeal reportedly happened in London, New York, and on a private island that Epstein owned in the Caribbean.
At the time, Virginia Roberts was only 17 years old, a minor, according to the Florida State's law. Another woman, named Johanna Sjoberg, accused Prince Andrew of groping her breast while they were sitting on a couch in Jeffrey Epstein's apartment in Manhattan in 2001.
In the interview, Prince Andrew denied he slept with Virginia Roberts in 2001, insisting that he was at a Pizza Express in Woking with one of his daughters, Princess Beatrice. He also stressed that he didn't regret his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein as he met "useful people" through him.
