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Prince Andrew has once again landed in hot water as new evidence related to Johanna Sjoberg, who claimed the Prince groped her in 2001, has been ordered to be unsealed. On December 18, 2023, Judge Loretta Preska signed an order requiring all material related to Sjoberg to be unsealed in 14 days.
The Sun reported that the new documents related to Sjoberg are among hundreds of files from 177 people, all part of a 2015 US defamation case by Virginia Giuffre against Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein's former lover and convicted s*x trafficker. Johanna Sjoberg, as per the same report, claimed that Prince Andrew groped her breasts at Epstein's New York mansion in March 2001. She was 21 years old at the time.
Prince Andrew's affiliation with s*x trafficker Epstein has previously made Queen Elizabeth strip him of his honourary military roles. In an interview with the BBC in November 2019, he tried to defend his friendship with Epstein and denied allegations of having s*x with a 17-year-old Giuffre. Following the interview, on November 20, 2019, the Prince announced he would suspend his public duties.
It was all done in “a joking manner”: Sjoberg alleged in a deposition against Prince Andrew
In a deposition, Sjoberg recounted her 2001 trip to Epstein's house, where Prince Andrew allegedly groped her. She alleged that it was all done "in a joking manner" and "everyone laughed."
“I just remember someone suggesting a photo and they told us to get on the couch. And so Virginia and Andrew sat on the couch and they put the puppet on her lap. And so I sat on Andrew’s lap, I believe of my own volition, and they took the puppet’s hands and put it on Virginia’s breast and so Andrew put his on mine,” she claimed.
The Sun reported that Sjoberg was a supporter of Virginia Giuffre, who claimed Prince Andrew had s*x with her three times when she was 17 years old in 2001. Giuffre was allegedly a victim of the s*x trafficking ring run by Epstein and Maxwell.
According to The Irish Sun, Sjoberg was approached by Ghislaine Maxwell in 1999 when she was a young college student and offered a job answering phones. However, Sjoberg claimed she was later encouraged to act s*xually with both Epstein and Prince Andrew.
Sjoberg alleged that when she first visited Epstein in his New York mansion, she was asked to perform s*xual massages on him. In mid-1999, Guiffre, Epstein, and Sjoberg reportedly visited Prince Andrew in Balmoral, where she met the Prince for the first time.
Sjoberg, 42, is currently a hairdresser near Palm Springs, Florida. According to her LinkedIn profile, she is the founder and owner of Beautyfool Hair Care and Beautyfool Hair Studio.
Prince Andrew and Epstein's relationship explored
Sky News reported that Prince Andrew and Epstein met in 1999 through Ghislaine Maxwell. The three were seen holidaying together at Donald Trump's Ma-a-Lago club in Florida in 2000.
In 2001, they were seen together at the infamous house party in Epstein's New York mansion, where Prince Andrew allegedly groped Sjoberg. In 2010, Prince Andrew and Epstein were photographed in Central Park, New York, following Epstein's release from prison after being convicted of s*x trafficking minors in 2008. These photos stirred a swarm of controversy for the Prince, who quit his role as UK trade envoy following the backlash.
In 2015, Giuffre alleged that the prince had s*x with her when she was 17 years old. The Prince and Buckingham Palace denied these claims, stating the allegations were "false and without any foundation." They also said that "any suggestion of impropriety with underage minors" by the Prince was "categorically untrue."
In 2019, the groping allegations made by Sjoberg made their rounds in the press, which the Palace denied being true again. In August 2019, Epstein was found dead in his prison cell in Manhattan. His death was ruled as suicide. After Epstein's death, Prince Andrew made the following statement:
"At no stage during the limited time I spent with him [Epstein] did I see, witness or suspect any behaviour of the sort that subsequently led to his arrest and conviction."
In November 2019, the Prince finally opened up about his 20-year friendship with Epstein in an interview with the BBC. The subsequent fallout from the interview had the Prince announcing that he would be suspending his public duties.
In the interview with the BBC, the Prince said that he believed staying with Epstein even after his conviction was the “honorable” thing to do. But, he said, he now knew it was “definitely the wrong thing to do, but at the time, I felt it was the honorable and right thing to do.” On being asked why he stayed at Epstein’s house in 2010, he said in the interview:
"I stayed with him and that's… that's… that's the bit that… that… that, as it were, I kick myself for on a daily basis because it was not something that was becoming of a member of the Royal Family and we try and uphold the highest standards and practices and I let the side down, simple as that."
Photos and videos taken in 2010 capture the Prince looking out the window of Epstein's New York mansion. According to Sky News, sources close to the Prince said he had gone to Epstein's home to tell him they could no longer be friends.
The 40 sealed documents regarding Sjoberg will be made public starting January 1, 2024, unless the individuals named in the documents appeal against the judge's decision.
