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Virginia Giuffre's family issues new tribute after Andrew accuser died by suicide & launch ‘public memorial'

Virginia Giuffre's family issues new tribute after Andrew accuser died by suicide & launch ‘public memorial'

The Irish Sun02-05-2025
VIRGINIA Giuffre's family has paid a touching tribute as part of a GoFundMe appeal to start a public memorial.
It comes
just days after
was tragically found dead at her remote farmhouse, an hour north of Perth, on April 25 after years of torment.
2
Virginia Giuffre, with a photo of herself as a teen, when she says she was abused by Jeffrey Epstein
Credit: Rex
2
Prince Andrew, Virginia Giuffre, and Ghislaine Maxwell
Credit: AFP
In a statement, the family said: "Dear Friends, Family, Survivors, and Supporters.
"First and foremost, thank you for the outpouring of love and support for our beloved Virginia.
"We know Virginia was not just a bright light to us but to many. The lives she touched, the strength, and the fight she has given us will live with us always.
"Though our family and many are experiencing an immeasurable sense of grief, we know that this will make us stronger— that is what Virginia would have wanted.
"With that, we think it is imperative that we find a way to leave her mark of legacy.
"Virginia, through her fight and testimony, was able to amass settlements, but unfortunately, through this tragedy, as many of you may know, funds and estates can take years to settle.
"While her estate is being settled in Australia, her family in America is dedicated to memorializing and celebrating her spirit.
"It is our intention with this fund that we create a public memorial not just for family but for survivors and supporters from all over to visit and share space with Virginia.
Most read in The Sun
"She deserves to have a permanent mark in this world that demonstrates her lasting impact.
"Virginia was adamant about seeing real change in active legislation. One of the laws she was driven to change was the Statute of Limitations for sexual abuse.
'Statute of Limitations is a convenient law for perpetrators.'
Virginia Roberts.
"It takes years for survivors to summon the courage to come forward and express their trauma.
"The Statute often expires before, stripping them of their voice and right to pursue justice. So many survivors don't come forward because of this.
"We aim to drive that pursuit of justice and propose new legislation for change.
"It was Virginia's life's purpose to continue the fight and break the chains of silence! We will continue that mission with all our heart and soul. Together."
The tragic tributes come after Giuffre's sudden death in April, which opened a Pandora's Box of unanswered questions.
She was the most
prominent victim of the notorious Epstein was found dead by
police
before her family revealed she had died by suicide.
More to follow...
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My dad Ian Huntley sends me dark letters from jail & haunts every second of my life – I can't bear looking in the mirror
My dad Ian Huntley sends me dark letters from jail & haunts every second of my life – I can't bear looking in the mirror

The Irish Sun

time16 hours ago

  • The Irish Sun

My dad Ian Huntley sends me dark letters from jail & haunts every second of my life – I can't bear looking in the mirror

Daughter of Soham killer reveals how she is even terrified of meeting strangers due to their probing questions - and why she has written to him one last time DEVIL'S DAUGHTER My dad Ian Huntley sends me dark letters from jail & haunts every second of my life – I can't bear looking in the mirror LOOKING in the mirror each morning, Samantha Bryan can barely stand it as she sees the eyes of a murderer staring back. As the traumatised daughter of Soham killer Ian Huntley, just getting through each day is a struggle as she discovers dark new details about her dad and receives twisted letters from him in jail. 8 Samantha Bryan is the daughter of killer Ian Huntley Credit: Glen Minikin 8 Evil Huntley has written to Samantha from his cell Credit: Rex Features 8 The sicko murdered 10-year-olds Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman in 2002 Credit: Collect Desperate for answers over what drove the former school caretaker to kill 10-year-old girls Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman in 2002, Samantha, 28, sent her father a letter over a year ago asking to meet him. Out of the blue, months later, in neat, black biro he wrote back, heartlessly accusing her of "insincere motives", adding: 'You are still my daughter for whom I have much love. With Love, Ian'. Care worker Samantha, of Cleethorpes, North East Lincs, has now written to her 'monster' dad one last time asking to meet, explaining it would help her to process a lifetime of trauma that has left her struggling with anxiety and depression. Speaking to The Sun for our Meeting a Monster series, she says: 'When I first read Ian's letter I was angry, frustrated and upset. "He told me he loved me as his daughter. 'I felt, 'you have no right to say that'. 'At the time it was so difficult to read. I felt so many emotions. 'All I could think about was how many times over the years he's wished me well but he's still denying that one thing that could really help me move forward. 'How can he say that he loves me when he has not done the one thing that will allow me to move forward with my life? 'Which is to finally reveal the truth. 'I hoped he would agree to meet me. I have written one last time to ask for that. It would really help me to process everything and to try to move forward.' Why I want to meet my monster dad Ian Huntley Samantha was 14 years old when she discovered who her father was after she was asked to research "notorious crimes" at school, and stumbled across a pixilated photograph of herself and her mother on Google. In the aftermath of this revelation, she turned to drink for a year aged 17 and was taken to the brink of a breakdown. More than a decade on, she is still haunted "every day" by the murders, which shocked the nation and remain among the most notorious in British criminal history. Samantha says: 'Being the biological daughter of Ian Huntley has impacted my life in ways not many people would understand. 'I've dealt with severe anxiety, depression. I've been in and out of therapy for years. 'I've struggled a lot to come to terms with who I am and where I come from, who Ian is and what he's done. 'It's something that haunts me daily. I think about it all the time and I don't think it's ever something that will leave me. 'Every time I look in the mirror I see how much I look like him. I have his eyes. 8 Huntley worked as a caretaker in the school both girls attended Credit: Alamy 8 The murderer has written chilling letters to his daughter Credit: Supplied 'Someone put up a photo of me next to his online and that's when I realised the similarities. 'People often say to me: 'I know your face from somewhere'. 'My heart sinks when they do, as I know they are referring to him, but they just can't place it. I just say: 'No we haven't met before' but so often they look puzzled. 'I think I have other traits from that side of the family as I'm also the only one in my family that has asthma. It's so hard to be the child of what everyone says is a monster... I know I'm a good person but at night that haunts me 'I found an article talking about his medical history online as I wanted to see if there was anything I should be worried about and I read that he has asthma too. 'That took me to a dark place. 'I had periods of despair where I have struggled with the fact of who my biological father is and that the only thing I know about him is what I've read - and what my mum has told me and that is that he's a monster.' Mum's suffering Samantha's mother Katie first met Huntley when she was a 15-year-old schoolgirl, running away from home to live with him against her parents' wishes. Their relationship descended into violence and he subjected her to humiliation - including making her eat cat food - and rape, before Samantha was born. Katie left him for good when she was pregnant with Samantha and has always told her daughter that becoming pregnant saved her from his abuse. Samantha admitted her mum does not want her to meet him, but has promised to support her in her decision. 8 Samantha's mother Katie Bryan left Huntley after he abused her Credit: Glen Minikin 8 Huntley was sentenced to life with a minimum of 40 years Credit: PA:Press Association 8 His girlfriend Maxine Carr was convicted of perverting the course of justice Credit: Cambridgeshire Police She said: 'When you look so much like someone you desperately want to know there is something good in them. 'I know I don't have evil in me. There is no way to condone what he has done. All I want from Ian is a conversation. 'Even if he doesn't want to talk about the events of that day, I want to see him for who he is. 'My mum's side of the family are amazing people and I'm so lucky to have been brought up around the people that I have. 'I want to know where that other half of me comes from. I want to know that it's not all bad, it's not all evil and that there is even just a glimmer of something good there. 'It's so hard to be the child of what everyone says is a monster. 'I know I'm a good person but at night that haunts me.' But that seemed to contradict it all...I just couldn't fathom why he could do such a thing Samantha reveals the catalyst that led her to make one last attempt to meet Huntley was the death in jail of a killer called Bradley Murdoch, who murdered British backpacker Peter Falconio in 2001. She said: 'He took his secret to the grave. I couldn't face that if that were to happen here.' Just a few weeks ago Samantha was also shown The Sun's exclusive story that Huntley had been wearing Holly and Jessica's football tops in his cell. She tells us: 'It brought it all up again. I was sickened. 'He previously wrote to me hinting at how bad he felt. But that seemed to contradict it all. "I just couldn't fathom why he could do such a thing. "I just thought of Holly and Jessica's parents because if I felt bad, what on earth would they be thinking? "I was upset for weeks and couldn't sleep as it's just so devastating."I was upset for weeks and couldn't sleep as it's just so devastating. 'This has been a constant shadow in my life.'

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