Paedophile Jeffrey Epstein was instructed to ‘studiously’ avoid the former Duke of York for the sake of his own reputation, newly released documents reveal.
The financier was warned it was ‘disastrous’ for him to be associated with Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor as he sought to rebuild his reputation in the years after his 2008 conviction, when he was jailed for 13 months.
He was also advised to urgently enlist a team of ‘Israeli experts’ to clean up internet search results which threw up ‘unflattering stories’ linking him ‘to paedophilia’ and ‘to Prince Andrew’.
Epstein was told distancing himself from the then prince was key to his long-term PR strategy to ‘steadily restore’ his profile after he was jailed for soliciting underage sex.
Ironically, ongoing revelations about their long association would eventually lead to Andrew’s downfall – with the King recently stripping him of his titles and soon his Royal Lodge home on the Windsor estate.
The 2011 step-by-step plan titled ‘Issues of Reputation’ by PR firm Osborne & Partners is among a 20,000-page trove released from the Epstein estate by US lawmakers this week.
The most pressing matter, the memo states, which needs to be ‘tackled with a matter of urgency’, was Epstein’s association with Andrew which was resulting in negative press in the UK.
It was written just months after The Mail on Sunday first revealed Virginia Giuffre’s allegations against the then duke together with the infamous 2001 photograph of Andrew with his arm around the then teen’s waist.
The financier Jeffrey Epstein was warned it was ‘disastrous’ for him to be associated with Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor as he sought to rebuild his reputation in the years after his 2008 conviction, when he was jailed for 13 months
Citing the Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday, the memo says ‘…it is disastrous for you to be seen in any way to facilitate his lifestyle, or to help with his well documented issues.
‘Their sole interest in you and Ghislaine (Maxwell) is as a means to attack Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson. You need to studiously avoid any involvement whatsoever with the couple, which will lessen the interest and we can establish a constructive relationship on your behalf with them.’
The PR firm says another ‘urgent priority’ was ‘cleaning up’ the results on major search engines such as Google.
‘Today, when anyone types in your name, a majority of the first few pages of the results are references to the charges, to paedophilia, to Prince Andrew, to unflattering stories – many of which link back to the Mail websites.
‘We have hired an excellent team of Israeli experts for other clients, and there are many firms that claim to be able to optimise results this way but fail to deliver.
‘I cannot overstate the importance of this, because it is the initial source of information on you for many people,’ the memo reads.
It claims that with careful planning and the ‘fullness of time’ it would eventually be possible to push for positive pieces about Epstein’s ‘philanthropy’.
The document also provides a step-by-step guide on how to gradually ‘restore your profile in select media, political and philanthropic’.
The instruction was written just months after The Mail on Sunday first revealed Virginia Giuffre’s allegations against the then duke – together with the infamous 2001 photograph of Andrew with his arm around the then teen’s waist
It includes establishing Epstein as a pioneering support in science and technology and suggests he hosts an annual event promoting his business and philanthropic interests.
The PR firm also encourages him to increase his profile by ‘spending time with European, Middle Eastern, Asian and Latin American political and business leaders. in a concerted way.’
It comes after emails released in the bombshell tranche revealed how Epstein had confirmed the infamous photograph he took of the former prince and Ms Giuffre in London was genuine.
Ms Giuffre said she slept with Andrew on three occasions – a claim the ex-prince has vehemently denied.
