Prince Andrew exchanged friendly chat with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein after the date he said he had broken off contact with his former friend, according to court documents freshly revealed.
In 2019, Andrew gave a notorious interview to the BBC’s Newsnight, in which he said he had not seen or spoken to Epstein after a meeting at the disgraced financier’s New York mansion in December 2010.
The interview was considered to have shown the prince in such a bad light that his mother, then Queen Elizabeth, ordered he step back from public life.
Now, the BBC reports that court documents in a case, involving the FCA and banker Jes Staley over the latter’s own connection with Epstein, include an email dated February 2011 in which Andrew wrote to his former friend “Keep in close touch and we’ll play some more soon!”’
Other emails released reveal the close nature of the relationship between the pair, with Epstein using one missive to request a friend of his be shown around the prince’s home.
Epstein died in jail in 2019 while awaiting further trial. During his Newsnight interview, the prince was picked up on his choice of words by interviewer Emily Maitlis, when he described Epstein’s behavior as “unbecoming.”
During the interview, Andrew said that he had ceased contact with Epstein “after I was aware that he was under investigation and that was later in 2006 and I wasn’t in touch with him again until 2010.”
Maitlis then asked: “Did you see him or speak to him again?” to which Andrew responded: “No.”
The BBC said they had requested but received no comment from Andrew about the latest emails.