Virginia Giuffre, the woman who accused Jeffrey Epstein and Prince Andrew of sexually abusing her as a teenager, has died by suicide aged 41, her family has announced.
The American-born campaigner, who had become a prominent figure in the fight against sexual abuse and sex trafficking, was found unresponsive at her farm in the Neergabby area of Western Australia on Friday evening. Police said the death was being investigated by Major Crime detectives, but initial findings indicated it was not suspicious.
Giuffre, a mother of three, had long claimed she was trafficked by convicted sex offenders Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, and that she was forced to have sex with Prince Andrew when she was 17 — an allegation the Duke of York has consistently and vehemently denied.
In a statement, her family described her as “a fierce warrior in the fight against sexual abuse” and “the light that lifted so many survivors”.
“She lost her life to suicide, after being a lifelong victim of sexual abuse and sex trafficking,” the statement said. “The toll of abuse… became unbearable.”
Giuffre had been living in the suburb of North Perth with her husband Robert and their children, although recent reports suggested the couple had separated after 22 years of marriage.
Three weeks prior to her death, she revealed in an Instagram post that she had been seriously injured in a car crash — a detail her family later said she had not wished to share publicly. Local police, however, downplayed the severity of the incident.
Giuffre first made headlines after speaking out about the abuse she suffered as a teenager, saying she was recruited by Maxwell in 2000 and introduced to Epstein shortly thereafter. She alleged years of sexual abuse at the hands of the financier and his associates.
Epstein died by suicide in a New York prison cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. Maxwell was later convicted for her role in the abuse and is currently serving a 20-year sentence in the United States.
In 2022, Prince Andrew settled Giuffre’s civil lawsuit in an out-of-court agreement, which included no admission of liability. The Duke expressed regret over his association with Epstein but issued no apology.
Giuffre remained a vocal campaigner for victims of sexual abuse, aligning herself closely with the global Me Too movement.
Follow us on:
