Disgraced British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell has said the well-known photo showing the Duke of York next to Virginia Giuffre is fake.
Maxwell, 61, who was convicted of sex trafficking, has previously cast doubt on the authenticity of the photo, said to be taken inside her Mayfair home, showing Andrew with his arm around Ms Giuffre, and Maxwell in the background.
Speaking from prison in the US, Maxwell said she is sure the picture is not real.
In an interview with TalkTV, due to be aired on Monday evening, Maxwell said: It’s a fake. I don’t believe it’s real for a second, in fact I’m sure it’s not. She added: Well, there’s never been an original and further there’s no photograph, and I’ve only ever seen a photocopy of it.
Andrew has also questioned the validity of the image of him with Ms Giuffre, formerly known as Virginia Roberts. The duke went on to pay millions to settle a civil sexual assault case to Ms Giuffre a woman he claimed never to have met.
According to reports in The Sun on Sunday and Mail on Sunday, Andrew is now considering what legal options are available to him regarding a bid to overturn the settlement.
Ms Giuffre sued him for allegedly sexually assaulting her when she was 17 after she was trafficked by disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, the former partner of Maxwell. Andrew denied the claims.