Emails buried in the Epstein files reveal the tactics employed by lawyers for Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor that frustrated US attempts to investigate the convicted sex offender.
Nine months of fractious legal correspondence sent in 2020 between Gary Bloxsome – a lawyer known as “Good News Gary” who has been described in the legal world as a “bulldog in a suit” – and US prosecutors, shows how the former prince was protected from being interviewed as part of the investigation into Epstein’s sexual abuse.
They raise the question of whether Mountbatten-Windsor’s offers to cooperate with prosecutors on the trail of Epstein – who killed himself in 2019 after he was jailed for sex trafficking underage girls – were truly in earnest.
Bloxsome is representing Mountbatten-Windsor for the law firm Blackfords, following his arrest last month on suspicion of misconduct in public office, thought to relate to his conduct as trade envoy as revealed in emails with Epstein.
The police inquiry could widen to include other potential corruption offences on top of a scoping inquiry into alleged sex trafficking, The Times first reported.
In 2020, Bloxsome also acted for the then-prince when US prosecutors approached him for questioning about the Epstein investigation, two months after his damaging BBC Newsnight interview, in which he was grilled over his relationship with Virginia Giuffre.
Giuffre, a victim of Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, said she was forced to have sex with Mountbatten-Windsor on three occasions. The royal reached a financial settlement with her in 2022 and has always denied the allegations.
Then-prince Andrew photographed with his arm around Virginia Giuffre, age 17, with Ghislaine Maxwell on the right (Photo: US District Court – Southern District of New York)He told Newsnight he did not remember meeting Giuffre “at all”, and that they “never had any sort of sexual contact”. Following that interview, Mountbatten-Windsor’s office stated he was “willing to help any appropriate law enforcement agency” with their investigations.
In June 2020, lawyers for the former prince argued he had offered assistance as a witness to the US Department of Justice (DoJ) on at least three occasions that year regarding the Epstein investigation, accusing the DoJ of breaching confidentiality rules by claiming “zero cooperation”.
The unearthed emails from that year, released along with thousands of Epstein files by the DoJ, reveal what really happened. Independent lawyers who have assessed them say they show the ex-duke’s legal team used a “sophisticated, multi-layered defensive strategy” and seemingly “evasive” approach.
The emails state that Mountbatten-Windsor is open to helping the investigation into Epstein, before delaying US attempts to arrange questioning and accusing the DoJ of leaks, with prosecutors growing increasingly exasperated.
Their request for a meeting is turned down. Bloxsome’s counteroffer of written statements answering a limited scope of questions is rejected.
Contain, limit, run down the clock: The defensive strategy
Women’s rights lawyer Dr Charlotte Proudman said Mountbatten-Windsor’s team “seemed to be very evasive on his behalf”.
“They try to suggest that he is willing to cooperate in good faith, but when you look at the detail, it appears he does not want to meaningfully cooperate at all.”
She added: “There does appear to be backtracking, seeking further information, delaying tactics, limiting the scope and time frame, trying to limit the exposure of Andrew to protect him – rather than to provide truth and justice for the victims.”
American-British lawyer Dr Ann Olivarius, who specialises in sexual abuse cases, said it is “entirely legitimate” for defence lawyers to protect their clients from criminal exposure, adding “nothing Blackfords did was legally improper”.
However, she said: “The question is not whether the strategy was permissible but whether the public statements about cooperation were an accurate representation of what was happening in the negotiations. They were not.”
The Met Police confirmed the former prince’s legal team’s details in a letter to US prosecutors in November, a month after the BBC Newsnight interview happened (Photo: US Department of Justice)Instead, she described the emails as “a sophisticated, multi-layered defensive strategy deployed consistently across nine months”.
Attempts to delay by “treating ordinary procedural matters as requiring extraordinary levels of internal consultation” – such as needing to gather information from the royal household – allowed Mountbatten-Windsor’s team to “run down the clock”, she said.
That Bloxsome and his colleagues ultimately prevented the then-duke from attending an interview with US prosecutors shows they did what they were hired to do, according to defence barrister John-Paul MacNamara.
“This might be a bit unpopular, but I don’t think Mr Bloxsome put a foot wrong with the emails. That’s exactly how I would have played it if I was in his position,” he said.
“The natural instinct would be to contain. You need to ultimately act in the best interests of your client. In circumstances where your client wants to cooperate, you have to try and insulate them potentially from both the media and from liability.”
In a photo verified by The i Paper, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor appears to be holding a young woman on his lap (Photo: US Department of Justice)The email exchanges took place two years before the former prince would reach a reported £12m settlement with Giuffre, which settled a civil sexual assault lawsuit without an admission of liability.
Mountbatten-Windsor denies all wrongdoing. He did not respond to a request to comment from this paper, nor did Bloxsome.
A statement on Blackford LLP’s website reads: “We confirm that we continue to be retained by Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor… No further comment will be made in respect of any matter relating to Mr Mountbatten-Windsor.”
Key extracts from the emails
2 January, 2020
US prosecutors state that they are seeking a “consensual, voluntary law enforcement interview” with Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor about “his relationship and communications with Jeffrey Epstein and his associates”, as well as sexual abuse allegations against the then-prince which had been made by Virginia Giuffre – which he denies.
20 January, 2020
Following a call and email chasing for an update, Bloxsome says Mountbatten-Windsor “has a strong desire to cooperate fully” but the legal team must “deal with the various issues and procedures that arise here that will need to be addressed to enable him to do so”.
“We should be able to deal with at least some of the minor preliminary issues in the next two weeks,” he adds, not providing detail. Later emails remain vague, stating this included “gather[ing] information from the Royal Household and others”.
Prosecutors in New York appear frustrated at the additional time needed “without a response to the question of whether [Mountbatten-Windsor] is willing to speak with us…”
27 January, 2020
Bloxsome sends off a warning email after Geoffrey S Berman, the then-US attorney for the Southern District of New York, spoke to the press stating the prince had not been cooperating. He rejects that characterisation and calls it a betrayal of “what we understood were confidential communications”.
A polite but terse back-and-forth ensues over the next week.
4 February, 2020
Prosecutors try to draw a line under the argument, and state: “You are aware of our position, and we do not believe any further rehashing of our prior conversations is productive at this point…. Please advise as to whether Prince Andrew will agree to be interviewed and, if so, when such interview will take place.”
Bloxsome replies a day later: “We will reflect on the position of DOJ and provide you with a considered response shortly.”
14 February, 2020
Bloxsome issues a robust complaint. “We regret to say that we have reached the conclusion that the DOJ’s dealings with the Duke of York have not been designed to seek his assistance in investigating and prosecuting the targets of the investigation.” He accuses Berman of seeking publicity by pursuing his high-profile client.
The lengthy email shuts down any further cooperation, saying that Mountbatten-Windsor has “reluctantly accepted our advice that…there is no purpose to be served in continuing to try to assist further”.
Towards the end of Bloxsome’s 14 February complaint he stated that trust had broken down between the sides (Photo: US Department of Justice)3 April, 2020
An internal email shows that US prosecutors have begun to pursue a legal mechanism to force Mountbatten-Windsor into a mandatory interview.
1 July, 2020
Bloxsome chases a reply to an email sent on 8 June to the DOJ which asked about confidentiality protections for Mountbatten-Windsor. “We have not received any response from you. We assume it is still under active consideration by your department,” he writes.
2 July, 2020
“There is nothing under active consideration because you have not proposed anything for consideration,” the assistant US attorney replies.
The tense email states that the US is still open to an interview with Mountbatten-Windsor, but they will proceed on the basis they have “no alternative but to pursue a compelled interview via formal request”.
6 July, 2020
Bloxsome offers a conciliatory note and chance to “start afresh”, citing “there may be cultural differences between UK and US legal practice that are causing problems in our communications”.
10 July, 2020
Prosecutors reply: “We do not think it would be productive to rehash the history of our communications… your client has neither offered nor agreed to sit for a voluntary interview”. They state they will continue to pursue a mandatory interview.
The emails often fell into a terse tone, such as this note from the US prosecutors (Photo: US Department of Justice)9 August, 2020
Blackfords send the US investigators a bundle of case law, suggesting the firm would seek to argue that any testimony compelled from Mountbatten-Windsor under the legal mechanism pursued by the prosecutors could not be used against him, directly or indirectly, in a US criminal prosecution.
10 August, 2020
Prosecutors are unprepared to offer “a broader grant of immunity” for any statements made by the ex-duke in the interview and say he would face legal consequences should he lie.
1 September, 2020
Bloxsome puts in writing: “Our client is willing to provide you with a witness statement, addressing any issues that he may be able to in relation to Ghislaine Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein, his association with them and his knowledge of them such as may be relevant to the prosecution of Ghislaine Maxwell.”
He added the questions would need to “rightfully be limited to the indictment period in the current proceedings (i.e. US v Ghislaine Maxwell), being 1994-1997”, as well as seeking strict reassurances around confidentiality and confirming any follow-up questions would also be answered in writing.
23 September, 2020
After a back-and-forth, prosecutors state: “We understand that your client has declined to sit for a voluntary interview and provide oral answers in real time to our office.”
They will continue “seeking a compelled interview”, refusing the offer of a written, limited statement.
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