Prince Andrew fights back tears in Queen’s funeral procession
Lawyer for Jeffrey Epstein’s victims say they are ‘insulted’ by Prince Andrew’s public appearances
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Prince Andrew fought back tears as he joined the procession taking the Queen’s coffin to her funeral at Westminster Abbey.
He was wearing a morning suit, rather than military uniform, after being stripped of his royal duties and military titles over his relationship with convicted sex abuser Jeffrey Epstein.
Prince Andrew, 62, reached an out-of-court settlement with Virginia Guiffre that accepted no liability in March, and has denied abusing her or other girls trafficked by Epstein and his partner Ghislaine Maxwell.
He was seen walking alongside the King, his older sister Anne, the Princess Royal, and his younger brother, the Duke of Wessex in Monday’s procession from Westminster Hall.
The Duke of York took up the same position after the funeral ceremony as the Queen’s coffin was taken to Wellington Arch. It will late be driven to a committal service in Windsor ahead of her being buried alongside her late husband Prince Philip.
Prince Andrew was heckled over his relationship with Epstein while walking behind the Queen’s coffin in Edinburgh last week, and the man was arrested and charged with behaviour “causing fear or alarm”.
Epstein’s victims have been angered by Prince Andrew’s appearance at public engagements following his mother’s death, fearing that he will try to “rehabilitate his image”.
“For the victims that are involved, seeing him in these types of public appearances and being praised by the public, it’s frustrating to them,” Spencer Kevin, a Florida-based lawyer who represented nine of Epstein’s victims, told The Independent.
“This is a man they see as someone who is, at the very least, disrespectful to the victims, by his friendship with a paedophile. And for him to be lauded in public, as he’s doing, and to be praised by the public, which is what he’s seeking, is insulting.”
In a tribute to the Queen issued on Sunday, Prince Andrew called her “Mummy, Mother, Your Majesty” and said it had been “an honour and privilege to serve you”.
“Mummy, your love for a son, your compassion, your care, your confidence I will treasure forever,” the statement added.
Prince Andrew has not been a working royal or serviceman since being stripped of his titles in January, but was permitted to wear his military uniform at a “vigil of the princes ceremony” during the Queen’s lying of state.
As the Queen’s second-eldest son, he spent 22 years in the Royal Navy and served as a helicopter pilot during the Falklands War.
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