Ghislaine Maxwell repeats claims Prince Andrew photo with Virginia Giuffre is ‘fake’ in prison interview
Ghislaine Maxwell has repeated claims that a photograph showing Prince Andrew with his arm around Virginia Giuffre is “fake”.
The 61-year-old was speaking from a Florida prison, where she is serving a 20-year sentence after being found guilty of luring young girls to massage rooms for disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein to molest between 1994 and 2004.
The disgraced British socialite has previously cast doubt on the authenticity of the photo, said to be taken inside her Mayfair home, and showing her smiling in the background.
Clips released ahead of an interview to be broadcast on TalkTV show her saying: “It’s a fake. I don’t believe it’s real for a second, in fact I’m sure it’s not.”
She goes on: “Well, there’s never been an original and further there’s no photograph, and I’ve only ever seen a photocopy of it.”
Prince Andrew has also questioned the authenticity of the image of him with Ms Giuffre and has said he’s “not one to hug” or “display affection” in public.
Ms Giuffre – formerly known as Virginia Roberts – used the image as evidence to support her allegations against the prince before the case was settled outside of court.
The duke – who paid millions to settle the civil sexual assault case – is now looking into ways to overturn the settlement, according to reports in The Sun on Sunday and Mail on Sunday.
He denies all claims and says he has never met Ms Giuffre.
Maxwell with Jeffrey Epstein
Ms Giuffre sued the duke for allegedly sexually assaulting her when she was 17 after she was trafficked by convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, the former partner of Maxwell.
Epstein was found dead in his cell at a federal jail in Manhattan in August 2019 while he awaited trial on sex trafficking charges. His death was ruled a suicide.
Read more:
How girls were lured to be abused by Jeffrey Epstein
‘Partners in Crime’: The intimate picture of Maxwell and Epstein
In an interview with BBC Newsnight in 2019, Andrew said while he recognises himself in the picture, he claimed it is not possible to prove whether the image had been faked.
He also said the picture could not have been taken in London, as he was wearing his “travelling clothes”.
Ms Giuffre told BBC Panorama the photo was “authentic” and said she gave the original to the FBI in 2011.
Maxwell originally cast doubt on the authenticity of the photo in a deposition.
She said the surroundings in the photo looked “familiar”, but also said: “We can’t really establish the photograph and all that”, adding: “I don’t know if that’s true, if that’s a real picture or not.”
Federal air safety regulators have opened a fresh investigation into the Boeing 787 Dreamliner – after the firm said several employees had committed “misconduct” by falsely claiming tests had been completed.
The probe will look into whether Boeing completed inspections to confirm adequate bonding and grounding where the wings of certain 787 Dreamliner planes join the fuselage, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said.
The investigation will also look at “whether company employees may have falsified aircraft records”, the US federal government agency added.
The FAA said Boeing is “reinspecting all 787 airplanes still within the production system and must also create a plan to address the in-service fleet” while the investigation is taking place.
Boeing shares were down 1.5% at $177.03 late on Monday afternoon.
‘Several people not performing required test’
In an email from 29 April, Scott Stocker, who leads Boeing’s 787 program, said that an employee saw what appeared to be an irregularity in a required 787 conformance test.
Mr Stocker wrote that after receiving the report “we quickly reviewed the matter and learned that several people had been violating company policies by not performing a required test, but recording the work as having been completed”.
In the email, addressed to employees in South Carolina where the 787 is assembled, Mr Stocker said Boeing promptly informed the FAA about what it had learned and said it is taking serious corrective action with “multiple” employees.
He added that “our engineering team has assessed that this misconduct did not create an immediate safety of flight issue”.
‘They are putting out defective airplanes’
It comes weeks after a Congressional investigation in April heard evidence on the safety culture and manufacturing standards at Boeing.
Sam Salehpour, a quality engineer at the company, told members of a Senate subcommittee that Boeing was taking shortcuts to bolster production levels that could lead to jetliners breaking apart.
He said of Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner, which has more than 1,000 in use across airlines globally including at British Airways, that excessive force was used to jam together sections of fuselage.
He claimed the extra force could compromise the carbon-composite material used for the plane’s frame.
“They are putting out defective airplanes,” he concluded, while adding that he was threatened when he raised concerns about the issue.
Read more:
Boeing boss and chairman head for exit
Boeing whistleblower found dead
Boeing quality engineer Sam Salehpour testifies during the Senate homeland security subcommittee hearing. Pic: AP
The engineer said he studied Boeing’s own data and concluded that the company is “taking manufacturing shortcuts on the 787 programme that could significantly reduce the airplanes’ safety and the life cycle”.
Boeing denied his claims surrounding both the Dreamliner’s structural integrity and that factory workers jumped on sections of fuselage to force them to align.
Two Boeing engineering executives said this week that its testing and inspections regimes have found no signs of fatigue or cracking in the composite panels, saying they were almost impervious to fatigue.
Boeing has been grappling with a months-long safety crisis since a panel blew out of a Boeing 737 MAX 9 plane mid-flight in January.
The Justice Department is conducting a criminal investigation into the mid-air emergency.
The National Transportation Safety Board has said four key bolts appeared to be missing from the plane.
Boeing has said it believes required documents detailing the removal of the bolts were never created.
A US soldier was detained in Russia over the weekend while on a private trip, according to officials.
The soldier, who hasn’t been named, has been accused of stealing from a woman, Sky News’ US partner network, NBC News, reported, citing four US officials.
The White House is aware of reports of an American soldier being detained in Russia, national security spokesperson John Kirby said on Monday.
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
The soldier was arrested in the port city of Vladivostok on 2 May, “on charges of criminal misconduct,” US army spokesperson Cynthia O Smith said.
He had reportedly been stationed in South Korea and travelled to Russia for a personal trip and not on official duty, according to the US officials.
Read more on Sky News:
US soldier detained in Russia, officials say
Israel says Hamas decision to accept ceasefire deal is a ‘ruse’
“The Russian Federation notified the US Department of State of the criminal detention in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations,” Ms Smith said.
“The army notified his family and the US Department of State is providing appropriate consular support to the soldier in Russia.
“Given the sensitivity of this matter, we are unable to provide additional details at this time.”
A man who tried to shoot a pastor during his service at a church was wrestled to the floor after his gun failed to fire, according to police.
Bernard J. Polite, 26, said “God made me do it” and planned to “wait to be arrested”, court documents reveal, when he entered the Pennsylvania church just after 1pm on Sunday.
Glenn Germany, who was giving a sermon being live streamed from Jesus’ Dwelling Place Church, told WTAE-TV in Pittsburgh that Polite smiled at him just before he pointed the gun.
He ducked out of the way as someone from the congregation tackled Polite, before he helped to wrest the gun away and keep him down until officers arrived.
“I am feeling grateful that I woke up this morning and that I am here, it could have gone an opposite direction,” Mr Germany said on Monday.
“But God has intervened and I am grateful for him.”
Polite was not known at the church, officials said, and court filings say he wandered over to the church after hearing music coming from there.
Read more:
9/11 victim’s DNA helps police identify body in 2003 cold case
Driver dies after crashing into White House gate
The body of a shooting victim was found in a home near the church in North Braddock, where Polite had been shortly before going to the church, county police said.
The county medical examiner’s office identified the body as Derek Polite, 56, of North Braddock, but did not confirm any specific relation to Bernard Polite.
Polite faces numerous charges, including aggravated assault and attempted homicide, and is in custody without bail.
State police said they don’t know if Polite has a lawyer, and county court records do not list one.
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
In a Facebook post on Monday, the church said Pastor Glenn is “doing fine” and “he says he is doing great and blessed to be alive”.
“He sends his love to everyone and he thanks you all for your prayers and concerns,” it adds.
-
Sports2 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Environment12 months agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Sports3 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Sports6 months agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Environment1 year agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Sports1 month agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Environment1 year agoTesla advances Powerwall pilot project with German electric company