Newly released documents from the Jeffrey Epstein files appear to show Prince Andrew asking Ghislaine Maxwell to help arrange meetings with "inappropriate friends," shedding further light on his relationship with the convicted sex offender and his associate.
The largest release yet of Epstein-related files includes emails from 2001 and 2002 between Maxwell and a correspondent identified only as "A," who appears to be Andrew. The messages, written while Andrew was staying at royal residences including Balmoral, refer to social arrangements involving young women described as "friendly and discreet and fun."
"Some new inappropriate friends"
In one email dated August 2001, "A" asks Maxwell whether she has found him "some new inappropriate friends." In later exchanges, Maxwell discusses organizing meetings with "girls" during a planned trip to Peru in 2002. Andrew replies by thanking those involved for their "kindness and generosity," and says he leaves the arrangements entirely to them.
Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence for sex-trafficking offences, also wrote about introducing Andrew only to people she could "trust." Photographs later show Andrew on an official visit to Peru around that time.
The files also reveal that the FBI sought to question Andrew about links to another sex offender, Peter Nygard, and that London's Metropolitan Police recently contacted US authorities to ask whether any investigations involving Andrew remain open. Andrew has repeatedly denied wrongdoing and said in October that he "vigorously denies" allegations linked to Epstein.