Virginia Giuffre, who accused Prince Andrew of sexual assault, has died, her family says

Virginia Giuffre, who accused Prince Andrew of sexual assault, has died aged 41.

In an announcement to Sky’s US accomplice community NBC News on Friday, her household stated she took her personal life within the Perth suburb of Neergabby, Australia, the place she had been residing for a number of years.

“It’s with totally damaged hearts that we announce that Virginia handed away final night time at her farm in Western Australia,” her household stated.

“She misplaced her life to suicide, after being a lifelong sufferer of sexual abuse and intercourse trafficking.

“Virginia was a fierce warrior within the struggle in opposition to sexual abuse and intercourse trafficking. She was the sunshine that lifted so many survivors.

“In the long run, the toll of abuse is so heavy that it turned insufferable for Virginia to deal with its weight.”

Police stated emergency companies acquired reviews of an unresponsive girl at a property in Neergabby on Friday night time.

“Police and St John Western Australia attended and offered emergency first assist. Sadly, the 41-year-old girl was declared deceased on the scene,” a police spokeswoman stated.

“The loss of life is being investigated by Main Crime detectives; early indication is the loss of life is just not suspicious.”

Sexual assault claims

Ms Giuffre sued the Duke of York for sexual abuse in August 2021, saying Andrew had intercourse along with her when she was 17 and had been trafficked by his good friend, the billionaire paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

The duke has repeatedly denied the claims, and he has not been charged with any felony offences.

In March 2022, it was introduced Ms Giuffre and Andrew had reached an out-of-court settlement – believed to incorporate a “substantial donation to Ms Giuffre’s charity in assist of victims’ rights”.

She caught by her model of occasions till the top

Of the numerous dozens of victims of Jeffrey Epstein, it was Virginia Giuffre who turned essentially the most high-profile.

She was among the many loudest and most compelling voices, urging felony costs to be introduced in opposition to Epstein, waving her proper to anonymity in 2015.

She instructed how he and Ghislaine Maxwell groomed her and “handed round like a platter of fruit” for use by wealthy and highly effective males.

However her identify and face turned identified all over the world after she accused Prince Andrew of sexually abusing her when she was 17 years previous.

The image of her along with the prince and Maxwell on the prime of a staircase, his hand round her waist, is the defining picture of the entire scandal.

Prince Andrew stated he had no reminiscence of the event. However Giuffre caught by her model of occasions till the top.

‘An unbelievable champion’

Sigrid McCawley, Ms Giuffre’s lawyer, stated in an announcement that she “was far more than a consumer to me; she was a pricey good friend and an unbelievable champion for different victims”.

“Her braveness pushed me to struggle more durable, and her energy was awe-inspiring,” she stated. “The world has misplaced a tremendous human being as we speak.”

“Relaxation in peace, my candy angel,” she added.

Dini von Mueffling, Ms Giuffre’s consultant, additionally stated that “Virginia was probably the most extraordinary human beings I’ve ever had the honour to know”.

“Deeply loving, smart, and humorous, she was a beacon to different survivors and victims,” she added. “She adored her kids and plenty of animals.

“She was at all times extra involved with me than with herself. I’ll miss her past phrases.

“It was the privilege of a lifetime to signify her.”

Ms Giuffre stated on the finish of March she had 4 days to reside after a automobile accident, posting on social media that “I’ve gone into kidney renal failure”. She was discharged from hospital eight days later.

Raised primarily in Florida, she stated she was abused by a household good friend early in life, which led to her residing on the streets at occasions as a youngster.

She stated that in 2000, she met Ghislaine Maxwell, a British socialite who was convicted in 2021 on federal intercourse trafficking and conspiracy costs and was sentenced to twenty years in jail.

Ms Giuffre stated Maxwell then launched her to Epstein and employed her as his masseuse, and stated she was intercourse trafficked and sexually abused by him and associates all over the world.

‘A survivor’

After assembly her husband in 2002, whereas taking therapeutic massage coaching in Thailand at what she stated was Epstein’s behest, she moved to Australia and had a household.

She based the intercourse trafficking victims’ advocacy charity SOAR in 2015, and is quoted on its web site as saying: “I do that for victims all over the place.

“I’m now not the younger and susceptible lady who may very well be bullied. I’m now a survivor, and no person can ever take that away from me.”

:: Anybody feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can name Samaritans for assistance on 116 123 or e-mail jo@samaritans.org within the UK. Within the US, name the Samaritans department in your space or 1 (800) 273-TALK.

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