US investigators have no means of compelling Prince Andrew to cooperate in the investigation into the late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, according to a legal expert cited by the Daily Mail.
An ex-federal prosecutor Rob Feitel was quoted as saying it would be a grave mistake for the Duke of York to ever visit the US or agree to an interview there.
“It would be an error of astounding proportion for him to ever come to the United States… It would probably also be an error for him to ever meet with U.S. law enforcement authorities and make a statement.”
According to another ex-federal prosecutor, David Weinstein, even if a formal request was made by US authorities to the UK government, and the latter approved it, the prince would not necessarily have to comply.
In the words of some experts, if he was found to have committed a crime, the Prince could theoretically be prosecuted in the United States. However, there was nothing to confirm this was possible.
Epstein Case
Prosecutors in New York have been eager to speak with Prince Andrew for months as part of their investigation into a spate of allegations made by several women who claim some of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein's staff and his girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell helped the financier recruit underage sex partners.
One of those women, Giuffre, also claims Epstein arranged for her to have sex with several rich or notable men, including Prince Andrew.
According to a sworn testimony under oath, Giuffre claims that while underage, she was forced to have sex with the Prince in 2001 and 2002, when she was in London and at Epstein's New York mansion.
The embattled Prince Andrew, 60, rejected the accusation in November 2019, claiming in a BBC interview that he does not remember Giuffre.
Regarding the woman’s claims of intimate relations with the Duke, the latter said:
“It didn't happen.”
Prince Andrew has acknowledged having stayed at Jeffrey Epstein's residences and seeing him once or twice annually.
After the interview, widely condemned by critics as showing an “insensitivity” to Epstein's alleged victims, the prince was obliged to quit royal duties.
The Prince also vowed to “help any appropriate law enforcement agency with their investigations, if required.”
According to the royal’s lawyers, the Prince offered to share information with US authorities pertaining to the Epstein case a number of times, yet under the condition that his statements be confidential.
In response, a US attorney in Manhattan, Geoffrey S. Berman, said the Duke’s lawyers were misleading the public regarding his desire to cooperate with the probe. An attorney for numerous alleged Epstein victims including Giuffre, Brad Edwards, said he had not succeeded in persuading Prince Andrew to answer questions as part of several civil lawsuits.
“We have received correspondence that there were other loops and hoops we'd have to jump through in order to ever get him to sit for a deposition - and that even then it would be highly unlikely,” said Edwards.
In early May, David Boies, an attorney and chairperson for the firm representing over a dozen alleged victims of Jeffrey Epstein, said that the Duke of York had ignored at least three written requests to be legally interviewed about his relationship with the deceased pedophile.
In an interview with Fox News, US attorney general, William Barr, confirmed that Prince Andrew won't be extradited for questioning over his links with the late pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.