Prince Andrew was accused of groping a young woman’s breast at the home of wealthy financier Jeffrey Epstein, according to newly released legal documents.
The allegation surfaced in a cache of legal papers unsealed by a US judge in a defamation case involving Ghislaine Maxwell - a British socialite alleged to have supplied Epstein and his well-off social circle with underage girls.
Epstein is a billionaire paedophile who is facing child sex trafficking charges involving dozens of girls.
Virginia Giuffre, an alleged victim of Epstein who also claimed she was forced into a sexual encounter with Prince Andrew, sued Ms Maxwell in 2015.
In the legal documents, released on Friday, Johanna Sjoberg, another alleged Epstein victim, said Prince Andrew touched her breast while sitting on a couch inside Epstein's Manhattan flat in 2001.
Buckingham Palace has insisted the allegations about the Duke of York are “categorically untrue”.
A spokesperson said: “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.”
Prince Andrew, who is the third child of the Queen and Prince Phillip, is known to have gone on holidays with Epstein up until around 2010.
In the legal papers, Ms 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.”
The legal documents claim Ms Sjoberg was a “young college student” who was contacted by “perfect stranger” Ms Maxwell, who “lured” her to Epstein’s home with the promise of a “legitimate job”.
Ms Giuffre’s lawyers said: “Ms Sjoberg’s testimony also corroborates Ms Giuffre’s account of being lent out to Prince Andrew by (Ms Maxwell).”
Ms Maxwell, Epstein’s former girlfriend, has denied the allegations.
Epstein’s extensive network of high-profile people in the upper echelons of society reached around the world – he hosted Bill Clinton at a private Caribbean island called Little St James, and flew Kevin Spacey and Chris Tucker to Africa as part of a humanitarian project. He was an associate of Donald Trump and previously a regular at the US president’s Mar-a-Lago club.
Epstein, 66, is already a registered sex offender after being found guilty of soliciting a minor for prostitution in 2008. He spent 18 months in prison.
He is facing fresh charges of sex trafficking and conspiracy and could stand trial next year.
The new charges laid against Epstein concern trafficking allegations involving dozens of minors from 2002 to 2005 allegedly carried out in Florida and New York. Epstein’s lawyers say they should be wiped as the new legal action backtracks on a plea agreement which saw him admit his 2008 charge in return for immunity from future allegations.
