‘No One Is Above The Law’: UK Authorities Say They Will Review Allegations Of Sexual Abuse Against Prince Andrew

The U.K. police plan to review the allegations of sexual abuse against Prince Andrew after vocal Jeffrey Epstein accuser, Virginia Giuffre, filed a civil lawsuit against the royal in New York earlier this week.

“No one is above the law,” said Metropolitan Police Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick said in an interview on the U.K. talk radio station LBC.

At this point there isn't a full investigation but Dick said police plan to review their stance on the case.

“I am aware that currently there is a lot more commentary in the media and an apparent civil case going on in America and we will of course, again, review our position,” she said.

Dick said police have had “more than one allegation that is connected with Mr. Epstein” and have reviewed and assessed those in the past.

While she declined to discuss any specifics, she said authorities took three different factors into account when reviewing the allegations, including whether there was evidence of a crime, whether they would be the right jurisdiction for any action and whether the person against whom the crime was alleged was still alive.  

“Those are the three things that we do look at and we have looked at in these cases and we have concluded that there is no investigation for us to open and we haven’t,” she said.

Dick said police had taken advice from the Crown Prosecution Service and believe they have reached “the right decision” after reviewing the case twice.

However, in light of the latest lawsuit, Dick said police plan to take another look at the allegations.

“It’s been reviewed twice before, we’ve worked closely with the CPS (Crown Prosecution Service), we are of course open to working with authorities overseas. We will give them every assistance if they ask us for anything, within the law obviously,” she said before adding again that “no one is above the law.”

Giuffre filed a federal lawsuit against Prince Andrew on Monday alleging that the royal sexually abused her on three separate occasions when she was 17 years old, during a time when she was allegedly being trafficked by Epstein, a now-deceased financier who had once rubbed elbows with the prince.

According to the lawsuit, Giuffre was first “forced” to “have sexual intercourse with Prince Andrew against her will” in London, while she was in town with Epstein and his alleged madam, Ghislaine Maxwell. She also alleged the prince sexually abused her in New York and again on Epstein’s private island.

“I am holding Prince Andrew accountable for what he did to me,” Giuffre said in a statement to Oxygen.com earlier this week. “The powerful and rich are not exempt from being held responsible for their actions. I hope that other victims will see that it is possible not to live in silence and fear, but to reclaim one’s life by speaking out and demanding justice.”

Prince Andrew—in addition to Buckingham Palace—has repeatedly denied the allegations against him and said in a 2019 interview with the BBC that he had no recollection of ever meeting Giuffre.

“I’ve said consistently and frequently that we never had any sort of sexual contact whatsoever,” he insisted.

After the lawsuit was filed the 61-year-old was spotted, along with ex-wife Sarah Ferguson, driving into Balmoral Castle where Queen Elizabeth II is currently spending her summer, according to The Daily Mail.

He has yet to comment on the federal lawsuit filed against him.

Epstein died in a Manhattan jail cell in August of 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges against him, stemming from allegations made by Giuffre and dozens of other victims. The Netflix docuseries “Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich” explores the sordid allegations against him before his death.

Maxwell, a British socialite, remains behind bars while awaiting trial this fall for sex trafficking, conspiracy and perjury for her alleged role in the operation. She has pleaded not guilty in the case.

A recent docuseries, "Epstein's Shadow: Ghislaine Maxwell," explores her life and connection with the disgraced financier. It's available to stream on Peacock.