Prince Andrew’s hopes for a return to royal life are over after the death of his sexual abuse accuser Virginia Giuffre at 41, sources have claimed.
Ms Giuffre, who was trafficked by Jeffrey Epstein as a teen, died by suicide in Western Australia last week after making a series of troubling Instagram posts.
She claimed she was trafficked to the Duke of York when she was 17 and was three times sexually assaulted by him – a claim which Prince Andrew has denied. The prince reached an out-of-court settlement with her in 2022.
A source has now told The Sun that any dreams of a comeback are closed for Andrew following his accuser’s early death.
‘The door to a return is firmly closed,’ the insider told the newspaper.
In the weeks leading up to her death, sources close to Andrew claimed he was ‘completely unsurprised’ that an Instagram message saying Ms Giuffre had ‘four days to live’ after a car crash ‘turned out to be a fabrication’.
Ms Giuffre is understood to have died at her farm in Western Australia, just weeks after being involved in a car crash which saw her say she had just ‘days to live’. She was involed in a domestic dispute with her husband, who is father of her three children.
Her family said in a statement: ‘It is with utterly broken hearts that we announce that Virginia passed away last night at her farm in Western Australia.
‘She lost her life to suicide, after being a lifelong victim of sexual abuse and sex trafficking.
‘Virginia was a fierce warrior in the fight against sexual abuse and sex trafficking. She was the light that lifted so many survivors.
‘Despite all the adversity she faced in her life, she shone so bright. She will be missed beyond measure.’
Her family added that ‘the light of her life’ were her children Christian, Noah, and Emily.
‘It was when she held her newborn daughter in her arms that Virginia realised she had to fight back against those who had abused her and so many others,’ they said.
The 41-year-old, born Virginia Roberts, grew to prominence after she went public with allegations against the late financier and called for charges to be brought against him.
‘There are no words that can express the grave loss we feel today with the passing of our sweet Virginia,’ the statement continued.
‘She was heroic and will always be remembered for her incredible courage and loving spirit.
‘In the end, the toll of abuse is so heavy that it became unbearable for Virginia to handle its weight. We know that she is with the angels.’