PRINCE Andrew is convinced that if he can just lay out the facts about his billionaire private sex island paedophile friendship before a jury, they will understand.
The Duke of York believes a jury of 12 good men and true will empathise with his humble jet-setting Royal lifestyle and will accept that he is not guilty of all charges even if he technically is.
He said: “I’m hoping for a jury of blue-collar ordinary working Joes from Long Island. Salt-of-the-earth types who’ll see that really I’m the same as them.
“I’ll explain – or rather my lawyers will, I’ve been forbidden to take the stand – that I quite simply enjoyed Epstein and Maxwell’s company, and never found it suspicious they were always hanging around with attractive teenage girls unrelated to them.
“I’ll admit that yes, I enjoyed being flown on a private jet to a private island, much the same as they might be impressed when a buddy gets a new pick-up truck. And yes I visited Epstein after his release from jail, just like they might stand by a buddy arrested for drink-driving.
“We’ve all been let down by friends, haven’t we? Whether it’s a work chum performing badly on the bowling team or a lovely couple turning out to be sex traffickers. The jury will get that really I’m the victim in this.”
He added: “I hope none of them want to go for a beer with me afterwards. I am ninth in line to the throne, you know.”
