This story discusses suicide. If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, please contact the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 or 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
Virginia Giuffre’s family was just minutes away while King Charles III was in Washington, D.C., for a landmark address to Congress.
The monarch marked the 250th anniversary of American independence with a historic four-day state visit that also included New York City and Virginia. While the 77-year-old won widespread praise for speeches championing a lasting U.S.-U.K. bond, he did not meet with Giuffre’s loved ones.
A Buckingham Palace spokesperson told USA Today the king would not meet with Giuffre’s brother, citing concerns it could affect “ongoing police inquiries” and potential legal action involving his brother, the former prince Andrew. Giuffre, a mother of three who accused the ex-royal of sexual abuse, died by suicide last year at age 41.
“I do believe it was a missed opportunity for the king,” her brother, Sky Roberts, told Fox News Digital. “I know that he has a busy schedule and that, obviously, there are a lot of other things going on in the world. But given that there were a handful of [Epstein] survivors in D.C. at the same time he was there, who were footsteps away — we were less than five minutes away from him. We were in D.C. lobbying at the same time the king was there.”
“The reason I think it was a missed opportunity is that, a lot of times, it’s not exactly what you say, but it’s about what you do,” Roberts said. “I felt like the king had an opportunity to do something that would’ve changed the narrative around Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell and, quite frankly, his brother. He could have stood there with the survivors.”
WATCH: KHANNA CALLS ON KING CHARLES TO MEET EPSTEIN VICTIMS AHEAD OF CAPITOL VISIT
“Did we fully expect the king to meet with us? No. It’s a huge ask,” Roberts said. “Meeting the king of England is a huge ask. But I would’ve hoped that he would’ve taken five minutes from his day to meet with us, given that Virginia was the most prominent survivor to come forward and had accused his brother.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Buckingham Palace for comment.
Giuffre said she was sexually abused as a teenager by influential men, including Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, after being trafficked by convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. She completed her memoir, “Nobody’s Girl,” before her death. In it, Giuffre described meeting Epstein in 2000, weeks before she turned 17, and being directed to have sex with friends and acquaintances of the financier’s, including Andrew.
Giuffre said she had sex with Andrew when she was 17. The 66-year-old has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.
“Virginia said, ‘He knows what he did, and I know what he did, and only one of us is telling the truth. And I know that’s me,’” said Roberts, referring to the disgraced Duke of York.
“This was a moment for the king to not only acknowledge Virginia, but also to tell the family, ‘I acknowledge that something happened here, and I promise to give you, your family, the survivors, a fair and accurate investigation so that we can get to the bottom of this.’ So I do feel it was a missed opportunity.”
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“He has nothing to do with it in the sense of being involved with Epstein,” said Roberts. “But it’s his place to address it. And that was a moment for him to address it face-to-face with the survivors. With us.”
Ahead of the king’s visit, the family held a memorial vigil marking the first anniversary of Giuffre’s death. More than 100 people gathered, the BBC reported.
“It’s an honor,” Roberts’ wife, Amanda Roberts, tearfully told Fox News Digital. “We don’t always ask for the mantle that we’re given, but we take it. And I think it’s been an incredibly difficult year. And I think it was really important for us as a family to step up to the plate because so many survivors walk this journey alone.”
Amanda said there was one key message she would share with the king if she had the chance to sit down with him.
“We want him and everyone to understand that [Virginia] was a girl, she was a child who was being trafficked,” said Amanda. “This wasn’t a consensual situation. Think of your children or grandchildren. What would you want for them if they were in these shoes, if something horrific like this happened to them? What sort of justice would you seek out for your family?”
In her lifetime, Giuffre became an advocate for sex trafficking survivors. Many parts of her story were supported by documents, witness testimony and photos, including one of her and Andrew.
Her brother, Danny Wilson, told Fox News Digital she was also a loved sibling.
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“My sister, on her best days, was funny,” he said. “She was cheeky. She was a wonderful mother and sister. She could be having the worst time of her life, and she would listen to whatever problems you had. She was a wonderful human being.”
“I think the face she presented, because she had to, was this fierce warrior, which she was, but she was soft and gentle,” Wilson’s wife, Lanette Wilson, also told Fox News Digital. “I don’t think the world got to always see that side of her. She was a nurturer. She was a protector in the most loving way. It didn’t matter what she was going through. She was always reaching out to help you. She carried this light even through all this darkness she went through.”
Epstein died by suicide in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges involving dozens of teenage girls and young women. Ghislaine Maxwell, who, with Epstein, made Giuffre a sexual servant, is serving a 20-year federal sentence after being convicted in 2021 of sex trafficking and other related charges tied to Epstein.
In October, the king stripped Andrew of his royal titles and evicted him from Royal Lodge, his 30-room mansion. The decision was made after weeks of pressure to act over Andrew’s relationship with Epstein and renewed allegations by Giuffre made in her posthumous memoir.
“It [was] one of the happiest days of my life when he was stripped of his titles,” said Roberts. “It was a feeling of, ‘She did it.’ And I also felt that I wish she were here to see it. What she taught the world, what the book taught the world, is that an ordinary girl can do extraordinary things. The people who were involved are starting to get a little bit scared and on their toes.”
On Feb. 19 — his birthday — Andrew was arrested and held for about 11 hours by British police on suspicion of misconduct in public office related to his links to Epstein. He was released under investigation, meaning he has neither been charged nor exonerated.
“I remember saying, ‘I think he’s sweating now,’” said Amanda. “I don’t think he ever believed that he was ever going to see repercussions from being involved with Epstein. It was so out in the open, his relationship with him. Even in emails, ‘We’re in this together.’ It’s time for you to come forward and say what you knew.”
Today, the family is determined to keep Giuffre’s legacy alive in hopes it will help others. They’re advocating for “Virginia’s Law,” which would eliminate the statute of limitations to allow adult victims of sexual abuse and trafficking to file civil claims against their abusers. While many states have expanded or extended these time limits in recent years, significant restrictions remain for adult survivors.
Wilson said it’s something his sister spoke of frequently.
“Abuse can happen so early that, by the time you get the courage and the strength to say something, a lot of the time it’s too late,” said Wilson.
“This is what Virginia wanted,” chimed Roberts. “This is what she spoke about in ‘Nobody’s Girl.’ This was her dream. And it’s alarming. By the time someone is ready to come forward, their clock may have expired.”
Wilson said the family will continue to speak out. It’s what his sister would have wanted.
“I just remember as her big brother saying, ‘Could you just stop and give yourself some grace?’” he recalled. “Her answer to us was, ‘I will never stop.’ She was persistent. She was stubborn. But she wanted to make things right.”
“This past year, I’ve asked myself continually, ‘What are we doing? Is this going to matter?’” he reflected. “But she’s easy to follow. She was my little sister, and she changed me. She changed my family. And she’s never going to stop.”
