On January 30, the U.S. Department of Justice released a large batch of documents related to the wealthy sex offender Jeffrey Epstein case, once again thrusting former British prince Andrew into the spotlight. British media revealed that in order to reach an out-of-court settlement over sexual assault allegations by female victim Virginia Giuffre, Andrew borrowed a total of about £12 million (RM63.9 million) from family members, but reportedly has yet to repay a penny.
According to The Sun, the settlement agreement reached in 2022 was paid collectively by members of the British royal family. The late Queen Elizabeth II reportedly paid around £7 million (RM37.27 million); the estate of the late Prince Philip, who passed away the previous year, provided about £3 million (RM15.97 million); and King Charles III also contributed approximately £1.5 million (RM7.99 million), with the remainder made up by other royal family members. Sources claim these funds were used to quell the scandal’s impact on the royal family, especially in advance of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations in 2022.
Giuffre accused Andrew of having sex with her when she was 17, after having been trafficked to the UK by Epstein. For a long time, a photograph of Andrew with his arm around Giuffre in Ghislaine Maxwell’s London apartment has been regarded as key evidence. Andrew has always denied any wrongdoing, but ultimately agreed to pay £12 million in an out-of-court settlement, meaning the case did not have to be heard in a U.S. court.
Andrew Fails to Sell Swiss Chalet, No Loan Repayment to Date
The report says Andrew originally planned to sell his chalet in the Swiss ski resort town of Verbier to repay the loans; the property was valued at around £19 million (RM101 million). However, due to heavy mortgage burdens and limited actual profit, the repayment plan stalled. Sources claim that to this day, there has been no sign of repayment of the royal loans.
Previous reports indicated that Andrew had moved out of his Royal Lodge residence in Windsor, and was accused of maintaining ties with Epstein while serving as the UK’s trade envoy, even allegedly leaking confidential information. British police are reviewing these matters.
Notably, Giuffre died by suicide in April 2025, at the age of 41. With the U.S. Department of Justice documents once again coming to light, the relationship between Andrew and Epstein has returned to the spotlight, and how the British royal family deals with the aftermath is drawing significant attention.