NEED TO KNOW
- Virginia Giuffre describes the alleged emotional, physical and sexual abuse she suffered at the hands of the late financier Jeffrey Epstein and his co-conspirator, Ghislaine Maxwell, in her new memoir
- Before Giuffre died of suicide in April, she told co-author Amy Wallace that she wanted the book to be published no matter what happened in the future
- Giuffre wrote that she hopes telling her story will help others do the same and seek help if necessary
Years after breaking free from the sex trafficking ring run by Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, Virginia Giuffre became one of their most outspoken accusers.
After years of trying to seek justice against them for abusing her and trafficking her to powerful men, in 2017, she and two other survivors sat down for an explosive interview with the Miami Herald that helped lead to Epstein’s arrest in 2019 on federal sex trafficking charges.
Epstein died while behind bars in Aug. 2019 as he was awaiting trial.
Depositions from Giuffre’s 2015 defamation case against Maxwell — that were later unsealed — also helped convict the former British socialite of sex trafficking in 2021.
Over the years, Giuffre worked on her memoir, which chronicles the sexual abuse she suffered as a child, ultimately leading her to stay with Epstein and Maxwell; how Maxwell recruited her to have sex with her and Epstein, later trafficking her to other men; and the emotional and physical toll it took on her.
Giuffre died by suicide on April 25 at 41 years old. Weeks before, on April 1, the married mother of three wrote to her co-author, Amy Wallace, “It is my heartfelt wish that this work be published, regardless of my circumstances at the time.”
The long-awaited book, Nobody’s Girl: A Memoir of Surviving Abuse and Fighting for Justice, debuted on Tuesday, Oct. 21.
Here are some of the biggest bombshells from the book, which was reviewed by PEOPLE:
Did Giuffre Get Pregnant While Being Trafficked? If So, Who Was the Father?
In July 2001, when Giuffre was 17 and had been allegedly sexually assaulted and trafficked to many men by Epstein and Maxwell, she wrote that she fell ill with stabbing abdominal pain and irregular bleeding, “waking up in a pool of blood,” she wrote.
Epstein took her to the hospital, where she was heavily sedated.
A few days after she was discharged, she says she began to “piece things together” and noticed that she had a “tiny incision near my belly button, which one of the other girls in the house told me was consistent with a laparoscopic surgery for an ectopic pregnancy. But Epstein told me I’d suffered a miscarriage, which is something altogether different.”
She wrote that she had seen her medical records since then, which don’t mention a miscarriage.
“I’ve already said that Epstein never wore a condom,” she wrote. “Neither did the men he and Maxwell trafficked me to … After my hospital visit, I had to come to terms with the fact that I had gotten pregnant and lost a fetus without even knowing it was happening.”
Savagely Raped by a ‘Well-Known’ Prime Minister
One of the most brutal sexual assaults she allegedly suffered came when she was trafficked to a high-powered politician she identified only as a “well-known” prime minister.
“Just when I thought things couldn’t get worse for me, they did,” she wrote. “Epstein trafficked me to a man who raped me more savagely than anyone had before.”
She claimed that the man “wanted violence,” and that he allegedly choked her repeatedly until she lost consciousness. She said when she left the encounter, she was bleeding from her mouth, vagina and anus.
Giuffre recalled “tearfully begging” Epstein not to send her back to the prime minister — whose nationality was not specified — but Epstein didn’t seem to care. “I don’t know if Epstein feared the man or if he owed him a favor, but he wouldn’t make any promises, saying coldly of the politician’s brutality, ‘You’ll get that sometimes,'” she wrote.
She did not name him in the memoir or in past court filings out of fear he would hurt her.
Sex with Prince Andrew
In the memoir, Giuffre details three sexual encounters she had with Prince Andrew.
The first time she was allegedly made to have sex with him was on March 10, 2001, when Epstein and Maxwell trafficked her to the royal.
During that first instance, she claimed that he caressed her toes, licked her arches and thanked her after the encounter, which she said lasted “less than a half hour.”
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The third time she allegedly had sex with him was during an “orgy” with Epstein and eight other girls under the age of 18, she wrote.
In a statement issued on Friday, Oct. 17, about his role going forward amid the accusations, Prince Andrew wrote that he will “no longer use my title or the honours which have been conferred upon me. As I have said previously, I vigorously deny the accusations against me.”
Regarding Giuffre’s accusations in the book specifically, a representative for Prince Andrew has not responded to PEOPLE’s request for comment, though Andrew has previously denied any wrongdoing on multiple occasions.
In 2022, the prince reached an out-of-court settlement with Giuffre, which included a statement in which he expressed regret for his association with Epstein, but contained no admission of liability or apology, per the BBC.
Epstein and Maxwell Allegedly Wanted Giuffre to Have Their Baby
In the summer of 2002, Giuffre was shocked when Epstein and Maxwell said they wanted her to have their baby — a request she considered “brazen,” she wrote.
Not only was she unsure whether she could even have a baby because of her previous hospitalization, but she also feared for the baby’s safety. She wrote that she had no idea how to tell them she didn’t want to do it, so she asked them if they would pay for her to become a professional masseuse.
They had no idea she was a “prisoner plotting her escape.”
Later on, she would fly to Thailand to study to become a masseuse, finding her freedom instead.
Digs from the Grave
Surrounded by so many beautiful young girls in Epstein’s orbit was difficult for Maxwell, Giuffre claimed in the book.
When Maxwell turned 40, “insecurities that lurked under the surface of her outgoing persona emerged.”
While she said Maxwell was still attractive, her short haircut, which was “provocatively stylish for a woman of twenty or so,” she wrote, “looked a bit haggard on someone twice that age. Increasingly, it was as if Maxwell was trying too hard,” coming across instead as “matronly.”
If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual abuse, text “STRENGTH” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.
If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health challenges, emotional distress, substance use problems, or just needs to talk, call or text 988, or chat at 988lifeline.org 24/7.
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