Sarah Ferguson ‘stayed at luxury Swiss wellness clinic while Epstein details broke’
Sarah Ferguson reportedly spent several weeks at a top wellness clinic in Switzerland while details emerged about her close relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.
The former Duchess of York reportedly checked into the Paracelsus Recovery centre in Zurich last December.
Ferguson has not been seen in public since appearing at the christening of her granddaughter Athena on December 12 at St James’ Palace.
Her ex-husband, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, has been repeatedly been featured in emails released in the Epstein files, revealing the extent of his links with the convicted paedophile financier.
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The files also shed light on Ferguson’s dealings with Epstein, who she once called ‘the brother I had always wanted’ and visited just days after the sex offender was released from prison.
A source told Daily Mail that Fergie had stayed in Zurich until the end of last month, where she had received treatment while at ‘her most vulnerable’.
The Paracelsus clinic charges approximately £13,000 a day and offers a range of treatments as well as access to a chef and chauffeur.
A three-day comprehensive health assessment costs £23,000, while prices for a seven-day executive detox start from around £115,000.
According to the centre’s website, ultra-wealthy clients can expect ‘privacy, exclusivity, and personalised care you are accustomed to’.
Fergie had previously attended the clinic and even appeared in a promotional video with its founder Jan Gerber.
She wrote on Facebook that Paracelsus showcased ‘clinical excellence in a place of deep humanity’.
Ferguson added in an interview with the Telegraph that the clinic specialises in assisting those with mental health issues ‘often behind the facade of a public role’.
A friend of Ferguson’s in Switzerland said the former duchess was ‘crushed’ by the recent revelations.
Royal historian Andrew Lownie said that while Andrew and Fergie’s reputation in Britain had been permanently tarnished by the Epstein affair, wealthy figures in the Middle East would be happy to bankroll the pair.
He added that even without an official royal title, Ferguson would continue to be seen as a royal figure in that part of the world.
Since her stay in Zurich, the former duchess has reportedly also spent time in the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, the latter where she met her daughter, Princess Beatrice, while she was attending the Art Basel fair.
Emails disclosed as part of millions of published files showed that Ms Ferguson had asked Epstein for financial support while the paedophile remained under house arrest.
She also wrote to the financier thanking him for being a ‘supreme friend’ and took her children, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie for lunch with him less than a week after he walked free from jail.
In another embarrassing email, the former duchess appeared to ask Epstein to ‘just marry me’.
Many of her exchanges were conducted after Epstein was arrested for soliciting prostitution from a minor in 2008.
Meanwhile, detectives are continuing a probe into Ferguson’s ex-husband Andrew, who was arrested earlier this week at the Sandringham estate.
A source in Norfolk suggested that Andrew, who was stripped of his royal titles last year and forced to give up the Royal Lodge in Windsor, was hardly bothered by the scandal.
Ferguson and Andrew lived together at the Royal Lodge for three decades after their divorce.
Metro has contacted Ferguson’s representatives for comment.
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