Graham Smith, the CEO of Republic, Britain’s leading anti-monarchy group, is calling for King Charles III to face questioning about his involvement in settling Prince Andrew’s sexual assault lawsuit with Jeffrey Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre. Smith has filed a complaint with the Metropolitan Police following the unsealing of documents related to a 2015 lawsuit against Ghislaine Maxwell, which featured Prince Andrew’s name over 70 times. Giuffre accused Andrew of sexual assault when she was 17 years old.
After settling the lawsuit for an undisclosed sum in 2022, it was reported that Prince Andrew may have received financial help from Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles. Smith believes that the public has a right to know if any public funding was used to settle the lawsuit and is calling for transparency and accountability from the royal family. He also believes that Andrew should not be treated differently due to his royal status.
The Metropolitan Police has not launched an investigation into the matter but stated that they would assess any new and relevant information that may come to light. Smith is pushing for equal treatment under the law for Prince Andrew and believes that the focus should be on justice for victims rather than protecting the monarchy’s reputation. Newsweek’s royal reporter, James Crawford-Smith, is covering the developments in this story.
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