The high federal prosecutor in Manhattan stated on Monday that Britain’s Prince Andrew has “shut the door” on serving to an investigation into allegations of intercourse trafficking by the financier Jeffrey Epstein and his associates.

It was the second time in lower than two months that the prosecutor, Geoffrey S. Berman, has taken the bizarre step of publicly declaring that Prince Andrew has refused to cooperate with the inquiry regardless of saying he was keen to.

“Prince Andrew has now utterly shut the door on voluntary cooperation,” Mr. Berman, the United States lawyer in Manhattan, stated in response to a query at a information convention on an unrelated matter on Monday. Mr. Berman added that his workplace was “contemplating its choices,” with out elaborating.

In January, responding to an identical query, Mr. Berman had stated that Prince Andrew had supplied “zero cooperation” within the investigation.

Late final 12 months, Prince Andrew gave a disastrous tv interview to the British Broadcasting Corporation about his lengthy relationship with Mr. Epstein. The interview shocked many viewers, who stated that Prince Andrew’s denials of sexual misconduct had been unpersuasive and that he appeared to have little sympathy for Mr. Epstein’s victims.

After the interview, Prince Andrew abruptly introduced that he was stepping again from public life, apparently involved that his televised look might threaten the popularity and charitable work of your entire British royal household.

In a public assertion on the time, the prince additionally stated, “Of course, I’m keen to assist any applicable regulation enforcement company with their investigations, if required.”

But that assist, Mr. Berman has now stated twice, has not but been forthcoming.

It remained unclear on Monday precisely what “choices” Mr. Berman would possibly train in additional pursuit of Prince Andrew. Prosecutors from his workplace have already reached out to the prince as their inquiry into Mr. Epstein’s former staff, girlfriends and associates has continued.

As a sensible matter, there could also be little Mr. Berman can do past exerting public strain on the prince.

When somebody is reluctant to assist with an investigation, prosecutors have the flexibility to situation a cloth witness subpoena for his or her testimony. If the subpoena is ignored, they’ll then ask a decide to situation a warrant to compel the particular person to testify.

But such ways are far more troublesome if the particular person in query is a overseas citizen dwelling overseas — to not point out a member of the British royal household. The United States authorities must ask the United Kingdom to extradite the Duke of York as a cloth witness, a extremely uncommon continuing.

Buckingham Palace didn’t instantly reply to requests for remark. The British Embassy in Washington additionally declined to touch upon what a spokeswoman stated was an persevering with authorized course of.

Mr. Epstein hanged himself final summer time on the federal jail in Manhattan, the place he was awaiting trial on intercourse trafficking and conspiracy expenses. Prosecutors had accused him of sexually exploiting dozens of ladies and ladies in New York and Florida.

Shortly after Mr. Epstein’s dying, Mr. Berman stated in an announcement that the inquiry into the sex-trafficking conspiracy had not but completed and that prosecutors had been dedicated to standing up for the “courageous younger ladies” Mr. Epstein had abused. Attorney General William P. Barr has additionally vowed to deliver felony expenses towards anybody who helped Mr. Epstein.

Mr. Berman’s assertion on Monday steered that he stays dedicated to bringing expenses within the case with out regard to political penalties.

“The Southern District of New York has a protracted historical past of integrity and pursuing circumstances and declining to pursue circumstances based mostly on solely on the info and the regulation and the equities with out regard to partisan political issues,” he stated.

Prince Andrew, 59, stated in his tv interview that he can not “shed gentle” on Mr. Epstein’s actions for U.S. regulation enforcement officers as a result of the 2 had spent just a few days at a time collectively. He additionally stated that he must seek the advice of together with his attorneys prematurely of testifying below oath about his relationship with Mr. Epstein.

American prosecutors could also be fascinated about talking with the prince due to his friendship with Ghislaine Maxwell, a British socialite who was Mr. Epstein’s former girlfriend. She has been accused in lawsuits of appearing as a high recruiter for Mr. Epstein, procuring ladies and younger ladies for him to sexually abuse.

Ms. Maxwell, who has beforehand denied any wrongdoing, was considered one of 4 ladies named as doable co-conspirators and granted immunity from prosecution in a broadly criticized plea cut price that Mr. Epstein struck with federal prosecutors in Florida greater than a decade in the past.

Mr. Epstein’s dying introduced renewed consideration to his relationships with distinguished figures in politics, academia and enterprise. His social orbit included two American presidents — Bill Clinton and Donald Trump — and he cultivated relationships with billionaires like Bill Gates and Leslie Wexner. His buddy and former lawyer, Alan Dershowitz, was a part of President Trump’s protection workforce within the latest impeachment proceedings.