Prince Andrew. Photo / Getty
Prince Andrew's accuser could be among alleged victims of Ghislaine Maxwell who give impact statements to a New York judge before she hands the socialite her sentence for sex trafficking.
Sigrid McCawley, a lawyer for several accusers of Maxwell and her former boyfriend Jeffrey Epstein, said women who did not give evidence at the federal trial will be given the unusual chance to make a statement to Judge Alison Nathan.
One of McCawley's clients is Virginia Roberts Giuffre, whom she represents in her civil suit against the Prince in New York.
Giuffre claims she was forced to sleep with the Queen's son at Maxwell's London home in 2001 when she was 17.
The Prince has denied the allegations.
Victim impact statements, written or oral testimonies presented to the court at the sentencing of a defendant, force offenders to hear how their victim has been affected by their actions.
Although the judge will decide the defendant's sentence based primarily on the pre-sentence report and certain sentencing guidelines, impact statements should be considered before a final decision is made.
"At the sentencing, I anticipate that there will be a lot of testimony from many, many other women who were not able to be heard at the trial, who will come forward and bring information about their suffering at the hands of Ghislaine Maxwell," McCawley said.
"I believe this will be considered by the court before Judge Nathan renders her decision on the length of time Ghislaine will serve behind bars."
After criminal proceedings against Epstein were dropped when he was found dead in his prison cell in August 2019, US District Judge Richard Berman allowed more than a dozen women to read impact statements at a specially convened hearing.
Maxwell, 60, is facing up to 65 years in prison after being found guilty by a Manhattan jury on Wednesday on five counts, including the sex trafficking of a minor.
Judge Nathan will wait to receive a pre-sentence report before scheduling a date for the hearing.
This will be compiled by an impartial investigator who will look into Maxwell's background, family, education and employment history to determine if any of these factors should influence the sentence.
Judge Nathan could take into consideration that Maxwell is a first-time offender.
However, former prosecutors say the seriousness of the charges would merit a considerable penalty.
Sarah Krissoff, a former prosecutor with the Southern District of New York (SDNY), said she expected a "very significant prison sentence" for Maxwell.
"Given the involvement of minors, the judge has really great discretion to impose a significant sentence, and based on the evidence that was presented at trial, frankly, I expect the judge to impose a very severe sentence," she said.
There has been speculation Maxwell could co-operate with US authorities and begin "naming names" in exchange for leniency. However, legal experts say it is unlikely at this stage.
Her attorneys have said they are working on an appeal, though they did not lay out the legal grounds.
Some 135 people claimed compensation from the Epstein Victims' Compensation Fund, which is operated by the late financier's estate, however only four women gave evidence at Maxwell's three-week trial.
McCawley represents a number of accusers pro bono, including Annie Farmer - one of the four accusers who took the stand.
Farmer told the court that Maxwell massaged her naked chest at Epstein's remote ranch in New Mexico when she was 16 years old, leaving her feeling "frozen".
"I just wanted so badly to get off the table," she told the court.
McCawley told The Telegraph she had an emotional call with Ms Farmer shortly after the verdict.
"Annie was crying, Virginia was crying, And I couldn't stop sobbing all evening," she said.
"I also spoke to the women that I represent who were not part of the trial. Even though they weren't named, this was a victorious moment for them too in so many ways," said McCawley.
"There were a lot of tears. I think that anyone who is a survivor of that kind of abuse and gets to learn that their abuser is now going to be behind bars, and likely for life, it is an incredible moment."
Maxwell is being held in Brooklyn's "hell-hole" Metropolitan Detention Centre, where she has been kept in isolation since her arrest in July 2020. Her lawyers did not respond to a request for comment.
The British socialite settled a defamation case with Giuffre in 2016 for an undisclosed sum.
Separately, it has emerged that the Duchess of York warned of the bizarre hold Maxwell had over her ex-husband Prince Andrew over 20 years ago.
Aides close to the Duchess said she was deeply concerned over how Maxwell had supplanted her role in the Prince's life after his naval career ended in 2001.
One aide complained that Maxwell was indulging the Prince's "every whim".
Such was the Duchess's concern over the relationship between Prince Andrew, Maxwell and Epstein, aides spoke at the time of her suspicions about the motivation for the friendship, voicing concern Maxwell was "obviously, acting as a conduit between the Prince and Epstein".
Epstein was subsequently convicted in 2008 of procuring a child for prostitution and was facing fresh charges in 2019 when he hanged himself in a New York jail cell.
As early as 2001, aides for the Duchess of York briefed a reporter about their suspicions that Maxwell was using her long-standing friendship with Prince Andrew to maintain her relationship with Epstein.
One aide said at the time: "Ghislaine's whole Andrew thing is being done for Epstein. Epstein will not marry her - sometimes he's nice to her, sometimes he ignores her - and it is incredibly likely she's doing it to just to keep in with him.
"Ghislaine is manipulating Andrew and he's too naive to realise it. She's his social fixer and he's going along with it - why? Because I think Epstein's fantastically impressed by it all. It's all very premeditated."
She added: "Ghislaine indulges Andrew's every whim."
Prince Andrew and the then Sarah Ferguson married in July 1986 but divorced in 1996 after having two children.
Prince Andrew has said he met Epstein through Maxwell in about 1999.
The Duchess of York has remained close to her ex-husband and the couple now live together in the Royal Lodge at Windsor amid speculation they may remarry.
There is no suggestion that at the time of the briefing in 2001 the Duchess was aware of Epstein's sexual proclivities or that Maxwell had procured underage girls for him.
Prince Andrew later arranged for Epstein to give the Duchess money that she used to pay off some of her debts.
The Duchess subsequently spoke in 2012 of her "regret" at her dealings with Epstein.
Aides for the Duchess suggested that Epstein became close to Prince Andrew as he began to wind down his naval career in the late 1990s.
He would later invite Epstein and Maxwell to a shooting party at Sandringham and a birthday party at Windsor Castle. In 2002, Maxwell was even photographed sitting on the throne at Buckingham Palace.
The aide to the Duchess complained at the time: "Ghislaine absolutely indulges him. Andrew's a very poor judge of character, easily impressed. He's gone from this couch potato to man about town, with nothing better to do than go from one holiday to the next. He's insensitive about how the Palace or his family feel.
"When the Duchess is working in America he stays up at Buckingham Palace in the week so he can go out to clubs. Andrew's spiralling out of control."
Prince Andrew is facing a civil claim from Virginia Roberts Giuffre. Prince Andrew denies any wrongdoing.
- Telegraph Media Group
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