Virginia Giuffre's family 'outraged' by Ghislaine Maxwell 'rewriting history'

The family of Virginia Giuffre today said they were "outraged" after Ghislaine Maxwell was given a "platform to rewrite history" over the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.

The socialite, serving 20 years for supplying girls to disgraced financier Epstein, dismissed claims Prince Andrew had sex with Ms Giuffre, describing the allegation as "bullsh**". In tapes made public by the US Justice Department, Maxwell, 63, said claims Andrew, 65, had sex in her London mews house's bathroom in 2001 were "absurd".

During the two-day-long interview in prison with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche in July, she said: "The bathroom where they claim it happened was so small, you couldn't lie on the floor." Reacting after the transcripts of the interview were released on Friday, Ms Giuffre's family said: "We are outraged. During Blanche's bizarre interview, she is never challenged about her court-proven lies, providing her a platform to rewrite history.

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"This travesty of justice entirely invalidates the experiences of the many brave survivors who put their safety, security and lives on the line to ensure her conviction."

The family added: “The content of these transcripts is in direct contradiction with felon Ghislaine Maxwell’s conviction for child sex trafficking."

Mum-of-three Ms Giuffre, who claimed she was abused by Epstein and trafficked three times to have sex with Prince Andrew when she was 17, committed suicide in April. Andrew has always vehemently denied the claims.

In the tapes released this week, Maxwell defended the Duke of York, saying he is innocent of the sex allegations against him and accusing Ms Giuffre of making up the story for financial gain.

Ms Giuffre sued Prince Andrew for sexual abuse in August 2021. The duke has has not been charged with any criminal offences. In March 2022, it was announced Ms Giuffre and Andrew had reached an out-of-court settlement - believed to include a "substantial donation to Ms Giuffre's charity in support of victims' rights".

During her interview with Mr Blanche last month, Maxwell said Ms Giuffre's allegation against the duke "doesn't hold water", and denied ever introducing Epstein to him or Sarah Ferguson. She also claimed that an image of her standing alongside Andrew with his arm around Ms Giuffre's waist was "literally a fake photo".

Ms Giuffre's family also condemned the Justice Department's decision to transfer Maxwell to a minimum-security prison following her meeting with Blanche. “By moving convicted felon Maxwell to a minimum-security, country club prison, the DOJ sends a disturbing message that child sex trafficking is acceptable and will be rewarded,” the family said.

Maxwell was sentenced in the US in June 2022 to 20 years in prison following her conviction on five counts of sex trafficking for luring young girls to massage rooms for Epstein to abuse. She has asked the US Supreme Court to overturn her conviction.

Epstein, 66, was found dead in his cell at a Manhattan federal jail in August 2019 as he awaited trial on sex trafficking charges. His death was ruled a suicide.