Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor sent Christmas cards to Jeffrey Epstein years after claiming he'd cut off contact

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor sent Jeffrey Epstein a Christmas card one year after claiming he'd cut off contact with the convicted paedophile.

The card, sent in 2011, included photos of his daughters Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, and said: "Wishing you much joy and happiness at this time and for the year ahead".

The card's existence came to light in newly uncovered files released by the US Department of Justice.

It was signed 'Andrew' and sent from an email address labelled 'HRH The Duke of York'. The card also contained a photo of Royal Lodge which, until recently, was Andrew's palatial home in Windsor.

The emergence of the card further exposes Andrew's claims that he had cut off all contact with Epstein in 2010.

Andrew and Epstein were photographed walking through Central Park in New York in December 2010.

During his disastrous interview with BBC's Newsnight in 2019, Andrew told journalist Emily Maitlis: "To this day, I never had any contact with him from that day forward".

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Meeting Epstein at his New York house during that visit, Andrew told Maitlis, had been a "wrong decision".

In October last year, however, an email sent from Andrew to Epstein on February 28, 2011, revealed the former prince had remained in contact with the financier longer than he'd claimed.

Andrew wrote the email after continued media reporting about the Epstein scandal, telling him they were "in this together" and would "have to rise above it." Andrew also told Epstein they would "play some more soon".

The disgraced royal sent Epstein another Christmas card, in 2012, with more photos of his daughters: Princess Beatrice is pictured climbing Mont Blanc and Princess Eugenie at the London Nightrider charity bike ride.

Andrew is now facing mounting pressure to answer questions about his involvement with Epstein, with a possible police investigation underway.

His daughters are mentioned at various points in the cache of newly-released Epstein files.

Sarah Ferguson travelled to Florida with her daughters, who were 19 and 20 at the time, on plane tickets purchased by Epstein shortly after his release from prison.

It was 2009 and Epstein had just been released after serving 12 months for soliciting a child for prostitution.

Other emails indicate a lunch took place between Ferguson, her daughters and Epstein.

In another email, sent by Epstein on July 1, 2010, he said would be in London that week and asked Ferguson about her daughters, who were then aged 21 and 20.

Another, sent on March 21, 2010, from a "Sarah" said to Epstein she was "just waiting for Eugenie to come back from a sh--ging weekend!!"

Ferguson has not escaped unscathed since the newly-released files came to light.

Overnight, six firms linked to Ferguson are being wound down according to new records from Companies House.

The former Duchess of York was also dropped as patron of various charities and forced to shutter her own foundation in the wake of the latest revelations.

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