The top federal prosecutor in Manhattan said on Monday that Prince Andrew has “completely shut the door on voluntary cooperation” in the case against Jeffrey Epstein, despite a public commitment to assist law enforcement.U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman added that his office is now “considering its options” to potentially force the Duke of York and son of Queen Elizabeth II to cooperate.In January, Berman said that Andrew had provided “zero cooperation.”Prince Andrew said in November that he would assist any investigations over his alleged involvement in Epstein’s sex trafficking, after prominent Epstein accuser Virginia Roberts claimed she was raped by Andrew when she was 17.“Of course, I am willing to help any appropriate law enforcement agency with their investigations, if required,” his statement said.The statement came after widespread backlash for an interview Andrew gave to the BBC in which he attempted to deny that he had ever met Roberts, despite a photo of the two together with Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s friend and alleged sex-trafficking accomplice. Roberts called the comments “ridiculous excuses.”This is not some sordid sex story. This is a story of being trafficked,” Roberts told the BBC. “This is a story of abuse and this is a story of your guys’ royalty.”The prince also said he would take a leave of absence from public affairs over the “major disruption to my family’s work” that his connections to Epstein had caused.“I deeply sympathize with everyone who has been affected [by Epstein’s alleged crimes] and wants some form of closure,” the statement continued. “I can only hope that, in time, they will be able to rebuild their lives.”
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