Convicted sex offender Ghislaine Maxwell has claimed an infamous photo of her is fake.
In an exclusive interview from her Florida jail, the former British socialite said she didn’t believe the snap was “real for a second”.
Maxwell was sentenced in mid-2022 to 20 years in prison for helping sex offender Jeffrey Epstein sexually abuse teenage girls.
She has since given an exclusive interview to British TV network TalkTV. It will air on Tuesday (Australian time).
But snippets have been shared to social media – and they tease a spectacular claim from the former socialite.
Maxwell tells the network a photograph of her, Prince Andrew and Virginia Giuffre – who famously sued the royal over allegations of teenage sexual abuse – is “fake”.
In the picture, Maxwell is seen smiling, while the Duke of York has his arm around Ms Giuffre’s waist.
“I don’t believe that – I don’t believe it’s real for a second. In fact, I’m sure it’s not,” Maxwell told TalkTV.
“There’s never been an original and further, there’s no photograph and I’ve only ever seen a photocopy of it.”
The picture in question was reportedly taken in 2001 in London.
Ms Giuffre had claimed Prince Andrew, the second son of the late Queen Elizabeth, assaulted her at Maxwell’s home in 2001.
Prince Andrew has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and has never faced criminal charges. In 2022, he and Ms Giuffre reached a settlement said to be worth more than $22 million – although it involved no admissions from the royal, whose brother is now King Charles.
The prince was also forced to give up his HRH styling and step back from royal duties as a result of the settlement.
The photo was seen as crucial to Ms Giuffre’s claims about Prince Andrew. She has previously said in a deposition that she gave it to the FBI in 2011.
Maxwell’s prison interview was done by Daphne Barak. In an article for London’s Sun newspaper, Barak said Maxwell claimed Ms Giuffre never met the prince.
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Prince Andrew’s connection with Epstein
Maxwell’s claims to TalkTV are similar to statements by Andrew in his train-wreck BBC interview in 2019.
He also said it was a “photograph of a photograph of a photograph” and said he did not remember it being taken.
“Nobody can prove whether or not that photograph has been doctored,” he said.
The duke also revealed he had met up with Maxwell in 2019 and the two did not discuss Jeffrey Epstein.
In 2019, Epstein was arrested on federal sex trafficking charges and later found dead in his cell.
In 2020, Maxwell was charged with sex crimes and the following year she was convicted of multiple charges, including sex trafficking, conspiracy and transportation of a minor for illegal sexual activity.
Prince plots to overturn settlement
Just as the clips of Maxwell’s interview were shared on Monday, news broke that Prince Andrew is talking to lawyers about overturning his settlement with Ms Giuffre.
The revelations came from Barak, who revealed in The Sun that the prince was consulting lawyers in the US.
“We can reveal the Duke of York is consulting US lawyers Andrew Brettler and Blair Berk and hopes to force a retraction or even an apology – which may clear the way for a return to royal duties,” Ms Barak wrote.
