(Photo : Photo by CHRIS JACKSON / POOL / AFP) (Photo by CHRIS JACKSON/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Britain's Prince Andrew, Duke of York, attends the ceremonial funeral procession of Britain's Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh to St George's Chapel in Windsor Castle in Windsor, west of London, on April 17, 2021. - Philip, who was married to Queen Elizabeth II for 73 years, died on April 9 aged 99 just weeks after a month-long stay in hospital for treatment to a heart condition and an infection.
Virginia Roberts's former boyfriend has claimed that Prince Andrew was the reason his relationship with Virginia did not work out because of the royal's involvement in disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein's sexual abuse endeavors.
The man, identified as 39-year-old Anthony Figueroa, said that his former girlfriend, Roberts, was a former "sex slave" and told him about her experiences with Prince Andrew. He said that Roberts, who was 17 years old at the time when she met the royal, said she did not want to engage in sexual acts.
Prince Andrew's Sexual Assault Case
Roberts claimed that Prince Andrew had a hand in sexually assaulting her when she was a minor. She said that the royal committed the acts three times when she was 17 years old, a claim that the Duke of York has continued to deny and has filed a lawsuit for unspecified damages.
Figueroa and Roberts were childhood friends before they entered a romantic relationship three years later and moved to a flat located in Palm Beach, Florida. However, he claims that Ghislaine Maxwell, who was recently found guilty, and Epstein manipulated them and forced Roberts into a "bad place," the Dailymail reported.
Roberts's boyfriend said that while Prince Andrew has so far avoided being questioned for his alleged involvement in the case, it was time to "face up to the case." In an interview, Figueroa said that being a royal did not make a difference in the case and that he had to take responsibility for his actions.
Figueroa said that he remembered a time in 2001 when Roberts first mentioned Prince Andrew and said that she knew what they wanted her to do and she did not want to comply. He added that his then-girlfriend was nervous and scared and needed his consolation to feel safe.
He also shared that while Roberts was forced to be sexually intimate with Prince Andrew, Epstein watched as Maxwell repeatedly got the young girl to have sex with her. The disgraced financier and his former girlfriend allegedly used Roberts as a poster girl for their sex trafficking ring, The Sun reported.
Excluding the Royal
The situation comes as Roberts's 2009 agreement with Epstein is set to be made public this week, which could be a crucial part of the legal case that involves Prince Andrew. United States judges ordered the agreement to be released on Jan. 3.
Lawyers of the Duke of York argued that the 2009 settlement between Epstein and Roberts released the royal family member from any liability. They said that this was because the agreement covered "royalty" and that Epstein had insisted it cover "any and all persons" who Roberts might sue.
However, the victim's lawyers have countered by saying that the agreement "on its face" applies "at most" to people involved in underlying litigation in Florida, thereby excluding Andrew. They also said that the Duke of York should not use the 2009 agreement as a "get out of jail free card."
On Jan. 4, a New York judge is set to hear arguments on whether or not to dismiss Roberts' civil lawsuit against Prince Andrew. This week, the royal family member called for the case to be halted or thrown out because his accuser was living in Australia, Sky News reported.
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