Prince Andrew allegedly instructed a Metropolitan Police protection officer to investigate his late accuser, Virginia Giuffre, shortly before the controversial photograph of them together became public.
Newly obtained documents suggest Prince Andrew informed Queen Elizabeth's deputy press secretary, Ed Perkins, that he had supplied his taxpayer-funded bodyguard with sensitive personal details about Ms Giuffre.
The correspondence appeared to occur mere hours before the publication of the now-infamous image showing Andrew with his arm around the then-17-year-old at Ghislaine Maxwell's London residence in March 2001.
Andrew has always stringently denied the allegations made against him by Ms Giuffre.
TRENDING
Stories
Videos
Your Say
In correspondence with Mr Perkins, the Prince appeared to write: "It would also seem she has a criminal record in the (United) States. I have given her DoB (date of birth) and social security number for investigation with (redacted), the on-duty ppo (personal protection officer)."
The email was sent on February 26, 2011, apparently following Andrew's receipt of the photograph from Mr Perkins earlier that day.
Andrew had allegedly responded to seeing the image by contacting Maxwell, then informing Perkins: "I've just had a short conversation with Ghislaine (Maxwell) and she says VR (Virginia Roberts) is a lying so and so, paraphrasing, but this is consistent with what JE (Jeffrey Epstein) says."
Mr Perkins was seen to reply: "Indeed Sir. All received. Awaiting their response now. Lawyers primed."
Prince Andrew appeared to ask his Met Police security detail to investigate his late accuser, Virginia Giuffre
|GETTY
It is currently unknown how Prince Andrew allegedly attained the confidential information about Ms Giuffre, and there is no indication that the Met Police officer complied with his alleged request.
The disclosure forms part of a cache of correspondence currently held by the US Congress, the Mail on Sunday reported.
The Metropolitan Police have told GB News they are investigating the claims.
Prince Andrew declined to comment to the Mail on Sunday. The People’s Channel has also approached his representatives for further information.
These developments have surfaced just hours after Andrew announced he would surrender the use of his Duke of York title and membership of the Order of the Garter, Britain's most ancient chivalric order.
LATEST ROYAL NEWS:
The emails suggest Andrew told the late Queen's deputy deputy press secretary he had supplied sensetive information to his security detail
|GETTY
In a statement released on Friday evening, Prince Andrew said: "In discussion with The King, and my immediate and wider family, we have concluded the continued accusations about me distract from the work of His Majesty and the Royal Family."
"I have decided, as I always have, to put my duty to my family and country first. I stand by my decision five years ago to stand back from public life.
"With His Majesty’s agreement, we feel I must now go a step further. I will therefore no longer use my title or the honours which have been conferred upon me.
"As I have said previously, I vigorously deny the accusations against me," he concluded.
Andrew remains a prince as he is the son of the late Queen Elizabeth.
His former wife, Sarah Ferguson, also lost the use of her title, the Duchess of York, as part of the decision.
Their daughters, Beatrice and Eugenie, will retain their princess titles as they are descendants of the former monarch.
The move follows a series of new damaging allegations against Andrew based on leaked emails with the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein and the upcoming release of Ms Giuffre’s posthumous memoir.
On Friday, Andrew surrendered the use of his ducal title and membership of the Order of the Garter
|GETTY
Last week, reports claimed a leaked email from Prince Andrew saw him tell Epstein they were "in this together" the day after the picture of him with Virginia Giuffre was published in 2011.
Prince Andrew had previously said he severed all communication with the disgraced financier in December 2010, despite the email being sent on February 28, 2011.
During his 2019 Newsnight interview with the BBC, he rejected Ms Giuffre's account, stating the London meeting "never happened".
In February 2022, Prince Andrew reached a financial agreement to resolve the civil proceedings Ms Giuffre had initiated in the United States, though he did not accept liability.
He continues to strongly deny the allegations made against him by her.
Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter