Radar Online
Prince Andrew has been spotted for the first time with his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson after Queen Elizabeth stripped him of his military titles and royal patronages earlier this week.
The Duke Of York is reportedly fearful of being thrown into deep financial troubles after being court ordered to face his accuser, Virginia Giuffre, concerning sexual assault allegations leveled against him.
According to the DailyMail, the prince was pictured with his former partner —nicknamed Fergie— driving in their Range Rover as they were leaving their home in Windsor on Saturday.
Paparazzi caught the two sitting in their car together with Fergie in the passenger seat while Andrew sat behind the wheel.
The pair was spotted in a two-car convoy which implies the prince was still given royal protection.
Last week, UK security minister Damian Hinds could not confirm whether taxpayers would continue to fund Andrew’s security arrangements after the Queen dethroned the royal.
Andrew is currently facing a civil lawsuit filed by Giuffre, who claimed she was forced to have sex with him when she was 17 and kept as a sex slave by Andrew’s former friends, Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.
The prince has denied the allegations and attempted to have his case dismissed, but the judge who presided over the case turned down his request.
Following the lawsuit, an insider revealed the prince had expressed his concern to friends over his financial state because of the case.
“Until very recently, it appears the absolute enormity of this case and the consequences he faces has not hit him [Andrew],” the source explained. “Now the bills are mounting up, and the possibility of a settlement, or even worse a judgment against him, is being widely discussed — he fears complete financial ruin.”
The informant added, “there is a very real prospect of him being completely broke.”
Reports indicated Andrew’s fees for his defense team have added up to at least $2 million, and experts believe he may have to provide $10 million to his alleged victim, Giuffre, to settle the case outside of court.
As Radar previously reported, Giuffre vows to destroy the royal after his lawyers requested to interview her husband, Robert Giuffre, and her psychologist, Dr. Ludith Lightfoot, in Australia.
Andrew’s team plans to ask Dr. Lightfoot to turn over all records of Giuffre’s mental health, prescription medications, and notes about her “alleged emotional and psychological harm” and “theory of false memories.”
The move has received backlash from legal experts and women campaigners who had called their actions “the ultimate form of victim-blaming.”
Anna Birley, the co-founder of Reclaim These Streets, said in response, “It should never be a question of how the victim behaves, what she wears, how much she drank, or what she shared with her therapist. Abuse is never ok, and the focus should be on the actions of perpetrator.”
