Virginia Giuffre, with a photo of herself as a teenager, when she says she was abused by Jeffrey Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell and Prince Andrew, among others. Photo / Getty Images
Virginia Giuffre, with a photo of herself as a teenager, when she says she was abused by Jeffrey Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell and Prince Andrew, among others. Photo / Getty Images
Virginia Giuffre’s father, Sky Roberts, doubts her death was suicide, insisting she was “very strong”.
Roberts and lawyer Karrie Louden question the circumstances, highlighting Giuffre’s work for abuse victims.
Giuffre’s allegations against Prince Andrew led to a $12 million settlement, though he denied wrongdoing.
Virginia Giuffre’s father does not believe she took her own life, saying: “Somebody got to her.”
Sky Roberts said that, in his view, there is “no way” his daughter would have killed herself, insisting she was a “very strong” woman who had too much to live for.
Describing the moment he was told of her death, he told Piers Morgan Uncensored: “I couldn’t even believe it. I mean, I started crying right away. I’m still crying. I can’t believe that this is happening. It’s impossible.
“And then for them to say that she committed suicide, there’s no way that she did. Somebody got to her.”
Giuffre, 41, a mother of three, died by apparent suicide at her home in Perth, Western Australia, last Friday.
Roberts’ doubts over her death echo those of her Australian lawyer, Karrie Louden, who also appeared to raise questions about whether Giuffre, one of sex offender Jeffrey Epstein‘s most prominent accusers, had intended to take her own life.
“We’ve got big question marks over it,” she said. “There’s suicide and then there’s misadventure.”
It has been claimed Giuffre was in the process of designing and building a refuge for victims of sexual abuse on her farm in Perth.
The infamous image of Prince Andrew and Virginia Giuffre, with Ghislaine Maxwell in the background. Maxwell is now in prison, convicted of sex trafficking.
Roberts revealed that his daughter had shown him the now-infamous photograph of her posing alongside Prince Andrew “many years ago when it happened”, before it became public knowledge, and that his mother had owned an 8x10 inch print of it.
“Virginia sent the original picture, so I know it wasn’t faked, but the original picture of Prince Andrew and her with Ghislaine Maxwell in the background, so I know that’s true that she did,” he said. “She was there with him.”
Asked how he would like his daughter to be remembered, Roberts said: “As someone who actually got out of a bad situation and made a good situation out of it, that she was helping a lot of other young girls that were feeling the pain of what goes on with people like that.
“I think she’s strong, very strong, and that’s why I don’t think she committed suicide. She had too much to live for. She had her foundation.”
In December 2019, Giuffre posted a message online that said: “I am making it publicly known that in no way, shape or form am I suicidal. I have made this known to my therapist and GP – If something happens to me – in the sake of my family do not let this go away and help me to protect them. Too many evil people want to see me quieted.”
However, her mental health may have deteriorated in recent months. She had become estranged from her husband of 22 years, Robert Giuffre, who had custody of their children, and she had been due to appear before a Perth magistrate over an alleged breach of a domestic violence restraining order.
Last month, she posted a photograph of herself on Instagram to say she had been seriously injured in a car accident and had been given just four days to live. However, police disputed the severity of the crash, and her family later said she had not intended to make the post public.
Since her death, Giuffre has been hailed by friends and campaigners as a “champion” for survivors of sexual abuse by the rich and powerful.
The sexual abuse allegations she made against Prince Andrew prompted a high-profile legal battle that culminated in a multimillion-dollar out-of-court settlement in which the Prince admitted no wrongdoing.
Giuffre posted a photo of herself on Instagram, covered in bruises. She said she was injured in a car accident and had only days left to live. However, police cast doubt on the claim, saying the accident was minor.
The Prince paid Giuffre an estimated US$12 million, but he has always vehemently denied allegations that he abused her on three separate occasions when she was 17, insisting he had no recollection of meeting her.
Her claims led to his effective sacking from royal duties.
Roberts said that, in his view, such a payment would not have been made had there been nothing to hide.
“I mean, it kind of admits guilt when you do that, when you pay somebody off like that, just, when Jeffrey Epstein paid, when Maxwell paid, it’s admitting guilt.
“I mean, why would he spend 12 or 15 million to give to her?”
He said of the Prince: “I don’t care for him at all. I mean, he’s a powerful royal figure and he just thinks he can do what he wants to do.”
Roberts said he had met Epstein when Giuffre started working for him as a teenager and that he “seemed like a normal person”.
“I went to his mansion and he came out in jeans and a T-shirt and just acted like a regular person, so I had no idea.”
When Roberts found out that Epstein was a serial sex offender and abuser, he was “really angry”, revealing that he was later told the billionaire had warned Giuffre that, if she said anything, “he has the power to do anything he wanted” to her family.
Prince Andrew’s office has been contacted for comment.
