The disgraced socialite Ghislaine Maxwell has claimed in a prison interview that a photograph of Prince Andrew with his sexual abuse accuser Virginia Giuffre is "fake".
The decades-old photo shows 17-year-old Ms Giuffre standing beside the prince with Maxwell in the background and was purported to have been taken at her London town house in the upmarket Belgravia neighbourhood.
Maxwell is in a Florida penitentiary after her conviction and 20-year sentence for helping the late financier Jeffrey Epstein sexually abuse girls.
Ms Giuffre said Maxwell told her to do for Prince Andrew what she had for Epstein, and that after the photo was taken she went dancing with a “sweaty” Andrew.
Now 39, Ms Giuffre sued the discredited royal in a US court, claiming they had sex in London when she was 17 and a minor under US law.
He settled the sexual assault lawsuit at considerable cost last year, sparing him the public humiliation of a trial. He was stripped of his military titles amid public outrage over the reported $16.3 million settlement, which is said to have been paid by his mother, Queen Elizabeth II.
In spite of first-hand witness accounts, Prince Andrew has not been criminally charged and continues to deny the accusations.
But in her interview with TalkTV, set to air in the UK on Monday evening, Maxwell, who has known the prince for decades, is adamant the image is not genuine.
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Trial evidence shows British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell and US financier Jeffrey Epstein. US District Court for the Southern District of New York / AFP -
Maxwell and Epstein have been found guilty of sex charges related to underage girls. US District Court for the Southern District of New York / AFP -
Britain's Prince Andrew, Virginia Giuffre and Ghislaine Maxwell at one of Epstein's properties. Maxwell used her "femininity to betray us" like she was "a wolf in sheep's clothing", one of Epstein's victims said before Maxwell's sentencing in New York. -
Epstein and Maxwell, who groomed and procured underaged girls for him. US District Court for the Southern District of New York / AFP -
Epstein, Maxwell and French model agent Jean-Luc Brunel on the financier's private jet, the 'Lolita Express'. Brunel died in prison in February while awaiting charges including raping minors. Photo: Shutterstock -
Judge Alison Nathan and Ghislaine Maxwell in a courtroom sketch. Reuters -
Maxwell with Epstein. -
Maxwell gives Epstein a foot massage. -
In a courtroom sketch, FBI analyst Kimberly Meder testifies during Ghislaine Maxwell's sex-abuse trial about a photo, shown on video, of Maxwell massaging Epstein's foot at his home. AP -
This photo of Maxwell and Epstein was entered into evidence by the US Attorney's Office. Photo: US Attorney's Office / Reuters -
US Department of Justice evidence. -
Maxwell with Epstein. -
British socialite Maxwell was convicted of helping Epstein sexually abuse teenage girls. -
Maxwell and Epstein. US District Court for the Southern District of New York / AFP -
Another trial evidence image of Maxwell and Epstein. US District Court for the Southern District of New York / AFP -
Another evidence photo of Maxwell and Epstein. Reuters -
Maxwell reportedly dated Epstein and then became a recruiter of young girls for him. -
A photo of Maxwell living the high life entered into evidence by the US Attorney's Office. -
A photo issued by US Department of Justice shows the interior of one of Epstein's private planes. -
Epstein's third private plane. -
An aerial view of Epstein's private island in the US Virgin Islands. -
An advertisement for a massage therapist shown to the court during Maxwell's trial. -
A photo issued by US Department of Justice shows the massage room at Epstein's New York house. -
Another image of the massage room entered into evidence. -
Maxwell once tried for a career dealing with climate change. Getty / AFP -
Maxwell attends the 2014 Education through Music Children's Benefit Gala at Capitale in New York. The charity was started by Epstein. Getty / AFP -
Epstein's mugshot. He committed suicide in his cell in 2019. Photo: New York State Sex Offender Registry / AFP -
A headline from 'The Times' in a London store on December 30, 2021, the morning after a jury in New York found Maxwell guilty of recruiting and grooming young girls to be sexually abused by Epstein. AFP -
A selection of headlines from British newspapers. AFP -
Kevin Maxwell, Isabel Maxwell and Christine Maxwell, brother and sisters of Ghislaine, walk outside the courtroom after she was found guilty. Reuters -
Maxwell's lawyer, Christian Everdell, leaves the US Federal District Court after she was found guilty. EPA -
Laura Menninger and Jeffrey Pagliuca, members of Maxwell's legal team, after her guilty verdict. EPA -
Maxwell's lead lawyer Bobbi Sternheim leaves the US Federal District Court after her client was found guilty on five of six sex-trafficking charges. EPA -
A protester outside court when Maxwell made her first appearance in July 2020. AFP -
A protester outside Maxwell's trial. Getty / AFP -
A protester holds a placard during a rally in New York City for Epstein survivors. Reuters -
Demonstrators rally in solidarity with the Epstein and Maxwell survivors in New York City. AFP -
Sarah Ransome testified against Maxwell. AP
"It's a fake," she states. "I don't believe it's real for a second, in fact I'm sure it's not.
"There's never been an original and further there is no photograph. I've only ever seen a photo-copy of it."
In an embarrassing BBC interview in 2019, Prince Andrew also questioned the photo's authenticity.
"I don't believe that photograph was taken in the way that has been suggested," he said.
"It's a photograph of a photograph of a photograph ... nobody can prove whether or not that photograph has been doctored."
Maxwell, 60, was moved to FCI Tallahassee, a low-security prison in Florida’s capital in July, from the Brooklyn jail where she had spent the past two years under close watch after Epstein took his own life in jail in August 2019, the Federal Bureau of Prisons said.
She appealed her conviction and 20-year sentence in July.
Ghislaine Maxwell's sentencing - in pictures
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Victims Elizabeth Stein and Sarah Ransome arrive at the US District Court for the Southern District of New York for the sentencing hearing of Ghislaine Maxwell. AFP -
Ghislaine Maxwell will learn her fate on Tuesday when a US judge sentences the former socialite for helping Jeffrey Epstein sexually abuse girls. AFP -
Ms Stein and Ms Ransome speak with the media outside the courthouse. AFP -
The trial of Maxwell, the jet-setting socialite who once consorted with royals, presidents and billionaires, has been a media circus. AP -
Victim Annie Farmer and her lawyer Sigrid McCawley arrive at US District Court for the Southern District of New York for Maxwell's sentencing. AFP -
Spectators wait to enter the court for Maxwell's sentencing hearing. AFP -
Maxwell's siblings Isabel Maxwell, Kevin Maxwell and Christine Maxwell arrive for the sentencing of their sister. AFP -
Ms Farmer, a victim of Jeffery Epstein, arrives with lawyer Sigrid McCawley for Maxwell's sentencing. Reuters -
Spectators wait to enter the US District Court for the Southern District of New York. AFP
Agencies contributed to this report
