🔗 Share this article

A US congressional panel probing sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein has reached out to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he undergo an interview as part of its probe into Epstein’s criminal operations.

In a communication released on Thursday, a US representative, the senior Democrat on the House oversight panel, asked that King Charles III’s sibling cooperate with its inquiry.

The written appeal to respond to queries follows a week after Mountbatten Windsor was relieved of his princely title and agreed to vacate his property in Windsor.

Documents and Allegations

Mountbatten Windsor’s name features in records and flight logs subpoenaed from Epstein’s estate and disclosed by the committee. He has also been charged by one of Epstein’s accusers, the late Virginia Giuffre, of abuse.

“The panel will examine claims of abuse by Mountbatten Windsor, and will seek details on Epstein’s operations, network, and associates based on the men’s longstanding and well-documented friendship,” the committee said in a press release.

It requested particulars from Mountbatten Windsor on specifics of his association with Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York jail cell in 2019. Andrew has always vehemently rejected any misconduct.

Content of the Letter

“It has been publicly reported that your friendship with Mr Epstein started in 1999 and that you stayed connected through and after his 2008 guilty verdict for soliciting minors for sex work,” the letter said.

It continued: “It has also been alleged that you journeyed with Epstein to his New York home, the Queen’s estate at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s private island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been alleged of abusing minors. This intimate friendship with Mr Epstein, coupled with the freshly uncovered 2011 email exchange in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further confirms our concern that you may have valuable information about the offenses committed by Mr Epstein and his partners in crime.”

A notification regarding the letter said it was supported by 13 other Democrats on the committee and requests a answer by 20 November.

Earlier Remarks and Assistance

The letter arrives a week after another Democrat on the committee commented: “Andrew should be asked to give evidence before the committee. The citizens should be able to know who was assaulting women and young girls alongside Epstein.”

However, the lawmaker does not have the authority to subpoena the ex-royal and Congress itself cannot force evidence from a non-US citizen.

In 2020, US agencies said that Mountbatten Windsor did not reply to US appeals for an discussion. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that authorities and the FBI had reached out to Andrew’s lawyers to inquire on his earlier promise that he was “ready to help any suitable law enforcement agency”.

“It’s reasonable for people to know whether Prince Andrew has honored with that pledge,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “offered absolutely no cooperation”.

Demands for Accountability

The representative said in a comment that “affluent and powerful men have escaped the law for far too long. Now, ex- Prince Andrew has the chance to tell the truth and deliver justice for the victims. We will not halt advocating for responsibility and clarity for those affected of Epstein and his gang of co-conspirators.”

Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after receiving testimony to the committee from Epstein’s victims, as well as media coverage of disclosed papers, “it is crucial that Andrew assists with the current inquiry. If he is not guilty, then he can clear his name.”

The lawmaker added: “And if not, our probe will reveal that, and the survivors will receive belated accountability. The Royal Family’s actions taking away Andrew of his styles show there is additional to this case.”

The letter was sent on the same day the British king formally removed Mountbatten Windsor of his royal title. Charles III officially made the adjustment – which had been revealed a week ago – by issuing a “letters patent” which the crown office published in the Gazette, the UK’s public registry.