Women abused by Jeffrey Epstein are calling on UK police to contact Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s ‘second victim’ after Britain’s top cop confirmed officers are examining “a whole range of suggested sexual allegations”
Women abused by Jeffrey Epstein are urging UK police to interview Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s ‘second victim’ after Britain’s top cop confirmed officers are reviewing “a whole range of suggested sexual allegations”.
If such a move goes ahead, it will intensify pressure on the former royal, who has faced allegations from two victims of the disgraced financier. The development comes as the ex-prince was pictured for the first time in the grounds of Sandringham, Norfolk, after he was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public in February.
Before her death last year, Virginia Giuffre accused Mountbatten-Windsor of abusing her in London, New York and on a private Caribbean island. He has always vehemently denied her claims. She sued the then-prince in New York in a civil abuse case, which he settled with a reported out-of-court £12 million payment.
But Johanna Sjoberg, 43, has also alleged the former Duke of York committed a “sexual act” on her. The hairdresser said on oath that she was fondled by Mountbatten-Windsor inside Epstein’s Manhattan mansion in 2001. Crucially, she claims the incident took place in front of Ms Giuffre.
Her evidence places her at the heart of events inside Epstein’s New York home. Ms Giuffre had alleged that the second time she was forced to have sex with the royal occurred at the same time, when she was 17, and that Sjoberg was present in the house.
British police are now weighing whether to speak directly with the successful Florida businesswoman to establish what she witnessed and what, if anything, she was told by Ms Giuffre about events in London. The move follows Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley’s visit to the United States last week, where he confirmed detectives are reviewing a wide range of allegations connected to Epstein and his associates.
Sources tell the Mirror that Sjoberg is now a focus of that renewed interest following the release of almost three million US Government Epstein files, much if which is redacted. Already, they have led to the arrest of Mountbatten-Windsor and Peter Mandelson on suspicion of misconduct in public office.
Last night, an Epstein victim, now a 39-year-old mother of two who knew of Johanna, urged Sir Mark to contact her about her knowledge of Mountbatten Windsor and Giuffre.
Praising Sir Mark’s approach, she said: “Sir Mark is doing what should have been done years ago, actually listening to victims and following the evidence wherever it leads. Johanna surely saw things; she was there, and her voice matters.
“You cannot keep ignoring people because of who is involved. I’m a mother now, and I think about the message this sends to our children, that power can silence the truth. It shouldn’t work like that. “If there is evidence, if there are witnesses, then police must speak to Johanna. It’s that simple. “Survivors have waited long enough to be taken seriously, and every delay just deepens the damage.
“This is about accountability, and it has to apply to everyone, no exceptions. Sir Mark has set an example to law enforcement around the world, none more so than in America. While the UK is now actively pursuing lines of enquiry, this country has done nothing. It is a disgrace.”
The mum-of-two added: “I’ve spoken to other women in our survivor group, and we all feel the same. Every victim deserves to be heard if the truth is ever going to come out. It is the only way we will ever get justice. If America refuses to ask the questions of us, then we are pleased others now are.
“Johanna has never held back from giving evidence. She is a warrior like so many of the women. We hope the police speak with her. We hope they speak to all of us.”
Sir Mark has made clear British investigators are seeking access to unredacted evidence held by US authorities, warning it may be vital if cases progress. He said: “Of course, there’s a big body of that evidence … in the United States in all those files and at some stage we’re going to need the unredacted evidence. We need the original copy, and where it came from, and that’s going to be necessary if we get to the stage of court cases.”
His intervention comes amid a wider investigation that also includes allegations of misconduct in public office involving Mountbatten-Windsor and Peter Mandelson, both of whom deny wrongdoing. Detectives believe key material remains buried within vast US case files linked to Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.
But it is the sexual allegations that are now back under the spotlight. Sjoberg’s claims were set out in sworn testimony during Ms Giuffre’s defamation case against Maxwell. In her deposition, she alleged Mountbatten-Windsor carried out a “sexual act” on her and described being present during encounters between him and Ms Giuffre.
According to Ms Giuffre, she was “loaned” to the royal in Epstein’s New York mansion in 2001. She said: “The second time I had sex with Prince Andrew was in Epstein’s New York mansion in spring 2001. I was 17 at the time. Epstein called me down to his office. “When I got there, Epstein was there, along with Maxwell, Johanna Sjoberg (Epstein’s assistant), and Andy. I was very surprised to see him again. Epstein and Maxwell were making lewd jokes about “Randy Andy.” Sjoberg also described a photograph taken during the same visit, involving a Spitting Image puppet of the Duke. She said: “It looked like him. And she (Maxwell) brought it down and presented it to him; and that was a great joke. And they decided to take a picture with it, in which Virginia and Andrew sat on a couch. They put the puppet on Virginia’s lap, and I sat on Andrew’s lap, and they put the puppet’s hand on Virginia’s breast, and Andrew put his hand on my breast, and they took a photo.”
She further alleged she had been trafficked alongside Ms Giuffre, having been flown from Palm Beach to New York by Epstein and Maxwell. Both Sjoberg and Ms Giuffre said they were “lured” into Epstein’s orbit by Maxwell, who introduced Mountbatten-Windsor into that circle. Sir Mark acknowledged that previous interviews with Ms Giuffre had not produced evidence that could be pursued in the UK. “With Virginia Guiffre, we did four of those interviews with her … and those interviews didn’t give us any evidence or any allegations of sexual offending or trafficking that we could investigate in the UK,” he said. “That’s why that investigation didn’t go forward.” However, he stressed the current review would follow the evidence wherever it leads. “Those investigations all go wherever the evidence takes them, quite comfortable with investigating sort of famous or powerful people. I think it’s really important for policing to do that, that sense of operating without fear or favour. The law applies equally to everyone, and those cases will go, say, wherever the evidence leads us to.”
The case has taken on renewed urgency following Ms Giuffre’s suicide, prompting Sjoberg to speak out after her death in April last year. “Suicide, drugs and overdose, prostitution, prison,” she said. “I can, with full certainty, say that it is only by the Grace of God I’ve found a different path. It’s not about me, but it is about me, how it could have been me, could have been any of us, really.” Epstein died in a Manhattan jail in August 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges. Maxwell was later convicted of sex trafficking offences and is serving a 20-year prison sentence.
