A victim of Jeffrey Epstein claimed sex tapes were taken of the Duke of York, former US president Bill Clinton and billionaire businessman Sir Richard Branson, court documents have disclosed.
Sarah Ransome, who gave a victim impact statement ahead of the sentencing of British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell for sex-trafficking, appeared to write communications claiming that the three were filmed by the paedophile financier.
The extracts were flagged by a firm representing Epstein’s lawyer Alan Dershowitz to demonstrate that Ms Ransome “manifestly lacks credibility”.
Andrew stepped down from public life after the furore over his friendship with Epstein and paid millions, on no admission of liability, to settle a civil sexual assault case with Virginia Giuffre, a woman he claimed never to have met.
He was cast out of the working monarchy after Ms Giuffre, who was trafficked by Epstein, accused him of sexually assaulting her when she was 17. The Duke strenuously denies any wrongdoing.
Last night a Virgin Group spokeswoman on behalf of Mr Branson said: “In a New Yorker report published in 2019, Ransome admitted that she had ‘invented’ the tapes. We can confirm that Sarah Ransome’s claims are baseless and unfounded.”
A US judge ordered hundreds of documents to be unsealed as part of Ms Giuffre’s previously settled civil claim against Maxwell, filed in 2015. Also accused in the email extracts from Ms Ransome was former US president Donald Trump.
Addressing the claims about Andrew and Mr Branson in the document released as part of another tranche published yesterday, Ms Ransome wrote: “When my friend had sexual intercourse with Clinton, Prince Andrew and Richard Branson, sex tapes were, in fact, filmed on each separate occasion by Jeffrey.
“Thank God she managed to get a hold of some footage of the filmed sex tapes, which clearly identify the faces of Clinton, Prince Andrew and Branson having sexual intercourse with her. Frustratingly enough, Epstein was not seen in any of the footage but he was clever like that.
“When my friend eventually had the courage to speak out and went to the police in 2008 to report what had happened, nothing was done and she was utterly humiliated by the police department where she went to report what had happened with Epstein, Clinton, Branson and Prince Andrew.”
No video has ever been made public while Mr Clinton and Mr Trump also have denied any involvement.
In the letter from Emery Celli Brinckerhoff & Abady LLP to the court, the firm said allegations against Mr Dershowitz were false. The firm said Ms Ransome’s “testimony was fabricated”. It added: “The emails are a necessary antidote to Ms Ransome’s deposition mis-statements because they demonstrate she manifestly lacks credibility.”
The email extracts also saw Ms Ransome take aim at 2016 US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, with one saying: “I will make sure that neither that evil bitch Hillary or that paedophile Trump gets elected.”
Epstein was found dead in his jail cell in Manhattan, New York, in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges. The death was ruled a suicide.
Maxwell was sentenced in June 2022 to 20 years in prison for sex trafficking – with an appeal scheduled to be heard in November.
On behalf of Mr Branson, a Virgin Group spokeswoman said: “In a New Yorker report published in 2019, Ransome admitted that she had ‘invented’ the tapes.”
“We can confirm that Sarah Ransome’s claims are baseless and unfounded.”
