Prince Andrew was served in the United States with a lawsuit brought by Virginia Roberts Giuffre, who alleges she was forced to have sex with him and was assaulted by him when she was 17, new reports say.
Attorneys for Giuffre said they sent the civil lawsuit to Andrew Brettler, the prince’s Los Angeles-based lawyer, by email and FedEx, with both copies having been received by Monday morning this week, the Irish Times reported. Brettler previously represented Bill Cosby and Armie Hammer, who was accused of rape but denied those claims. Prince Andrew denied having sex with Giuffre.
Federal law states the prince has 21 days to respond, or he could face a default judgment in the case. During a pretrial hearing in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York last month, Brettler alleged Prince Andrew may be protected from the lawsuit by a “secret settlement agreement” which has previously been sealed by a court, according to the Guardian.
PRINCE ANDREW SERVED IN CASE ALLEGING HE SEXUALLY ABUSED A MINOR
Still, the prince and his attorneys have denied the claims by Giuffre, and the British royal has not been charged with any crimes.
Prince Andrew was previously served in late August at his home in Berkshire, England. However, his attorneys argued in New York court on Sept. 13 that the British royal had not been properly served with documents related to a lawsuit alleging sexual assault.
Giuffre, 38, alleges the 61-year-old prince forced her to have sex when she was underage at the London home of the late Jeffrey Epstein’s longtime associate, Ghislaine Maxwell. She also accused the prince of abusing her around the same time at Epstein’s homes, including his New York City mansion and his private island in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Epstein was arrested in July 2019 and charged with sex trafficking and conspiracy for allegedly abusing girls as young as 14. He pleaded not guilty to the charges before he was found dead in his Manhattan prison cell in August of that year. His death was ruled a suicide by the New York City medical examiner’s office.
Maxwell was arrested in 2020 on charges of conspiracy to entice minors, enticement of a minor, conspiracy to transport minors, transportation of a minor, and perjury. Federal prosecutors later filed two additional sex trafficking charges against her in March. Maxwell, who has pleaded not guilty to the charges, faces trial in November.
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The Washington Examiner contacted representatives for the district court and Brettler but did not immediately receive responses.
