Sex allegations made against Prince Andrew REMOVED from court record
SCANDALOUS sex allegations made against Prince Andrew earlier this year have been removed from court record by a US federal judge.
District Judge Kenneth Marra ordered Virginia Roberts' accusations to be struck from court records after he denied her plea to join a lawsuit involving billionaire financier, and friend of Prince Andrew, Jeffrey Epstein.
"At this juncture in the proceedings, these lurid details are unnecessary," Mr Marra wrote in his order which was issued at the US district court in southern Florida this morning.
"These unnecessary details shall be stricken."
Roberts, who is referred to in the case only as Jane Doe 3, had attempted to join a lawsuit against the US government, filed in 2008, which seeks to reopen a non-prosecution agreement Epstain reached with federal prosecutors.
Epstein had pleaded guilty to state sex offences more than six years ago and served a 13-month jail sentence, but it is understood that he could have received a longer prison term if the federal Justice Department had brought charges.
Federal prosecutors opposed Roberts and another Jane Doe joining the lawsuit, to which Judge Marra agreed.
He wrote: "Justice does not require amendment in this instance."
The judge also said that the details of the sex abuse allegations against Prince Andrew and a well-known lawyer had no bearing on the lawsuit's goal of reopening the Epstein agreement.
He continued: "The factual details regarding with whom and where the Jane Does engaged in sexual activities are immaterial and impertinent to this central claim.
"These unnecessary details shall be stricken."
It is believed that attorneys for both women could appeal the decision, and it was suggested that Roberts could still be called to give evidence as a witness in the other women’s court action when it goes to trial.
The lawsuit against the US government, filed by two other Jane Does, claims federal prosecutors improperly concealed the Epstein non-prosecution agreement, violating federal victims' rights laws.
If reopened, Epstein could face a new federal prosecution.
Roberts, who waived anonymity in relation to the case by speaking to several publications, had claimed that Prince Andrew was one of the men she was forced to sleep with while allegedly being kept as a “sex slave” by Epstein.
She claimed she had sex with the Prince on three separate occasions.
Both Prince Andrew and Buckingham Palace have denied Roberts' accusations, however, the Palace has yet to immediately respond to today's court decision.
