1 week Ago By [email protected] (Christopher Bucktin)
A legal battle looks set to erupt over Virginia Giuffre’s fortune, following her apparent suicide at the age of 41. Ms Giuffre, who claimed she had been loaned out to Prince Andrew and others when she was a teenage sex slave of the late Jeffrey Epstein , died on Friday. While Andrew strenuously denied all her allegations, he is thought to have paid Ms Giuffre €14 million to settle a civil sexual abuse claim.
A notorious picture shows him with the then 17-year-old, but Andrew says he does not recall it. Ms Giuffre is also thought to have received a large defamation payout from Ghislaine Maxwell , after the jailed Epstein associate called her a liar. Sources told the Irish Mirror a battle over who gets the money could now break out between Ms Giuffre’s estranged husband, Robert, and her family, who live in the US .
The couple split acrimoniously last year but were still legally married at the time of her death, putting Mr Giuffre first in line. Mr Giuffre, who she credited with rescuing her from Epstein’s control, has been caring for their three children. A source said: “Because two of her children are underage, the court could order her estate placed in trust.
“Meanwhile, her family in the States, where she held citizenship, could launch a legal claim. It isn’t going to be clean. “The fact minors are involved usually pushes courts toward setting up a trust – but with an international family and huge money at stake, challenges are almost inevitable.
” At the weekend, Andrew was seen for the first time since the death of Ms Giuffre at her farm in Western Australia. He was driving a Land Rover at his home in Windsor, with ex-wife Sarah Ferguson. Earlier this month, Ms Giuffre said she had four days to live, due to renal failure caused by a road accident.
She accompanied the social media post with a picture of herself lying in a hospital bed, looking severely bruised. Police later indicated the crash had been less serious than the picture might have suggested. Ms Giuffre was discharged from hospital soon after.
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