Congressional Committee Asks for Questioning with Prince Andrew in Jeffrey Epstein Investigation

A American legislative body investigating pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein has formally written to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, once Britain’s Prince Andrew, asking that he undergo a deposition as part of its probe into Epstein’s illegal activities.

In a letter released on Thursday, a US representative, the senior Democrat on the House investigative committee, urged that King Charles III’s brother assist with its inquiry.

The written appeal to provide testimony arrives a week after Mountbatten Windsor was lost his princely title and consented to give up his property in Windsor.

Files and Allegations

Mountbatten Windsor’s name features in documents and aviation records obtained from Epstein’s estate and publicly released by the committee. He has also been alleged by one of Epstein’s survivors, the late Virginia Giuffre, of abuse.

“The committee will probe allegations of misconduct by Mountbatten Windsor, and will demand data on Epstein’s operations, network, and associates based on the men’s enduring and well-documented friendship,” the committee said in a statement.

It sought information from Mountbatten Windsor on details of his friendship with Epstein, who took his own life in a New York jail cell in 2019. Andrew has consistently categorically denied any misconduct.

Details of the Letter

“It has been publicly reported that your relationship with Mr Epstein commenced in 1999 and that you remained close through and after his 2008 sentencing for trafficking underage girls for sex work,” the letter said.

It stated further: “It has also been reported that you traveled with Epstein to his New York property, the Queen’s home at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s personal island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been charged of abusing minors. This strong bond with Mr Epstein, along with the recently revealed 2011 email exchange in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further bolsters our concern that you may have valuable information about the offenses committed by Mr Epstein and his accomplices.”

A announcement regarding the letter said it was supported by 13 other Democrats on the committee and asks a reply by 20 November.

Earlier Comments and Cooperation

The letter comes a week after another Democrat on the committee commented: “Andrew should be called to give evidence before the oversight committee. The people deserves to know who was assaulting women and underage individuals alongside Epstein.”

However, the lawmaker does not have the power to compel the duke and Congress itself cannot force evidence from a overseas individual.

In 2020, US agencies said that Mountbatten Windsor failed to respond to US appeals for an discussion. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that prosecutors and the FBI had reached out to Andrew’s lawyers to check on his earlier promise that he was “ready to help any suitable law enforcement agency”.

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

Appeals for Transparency

The congressman said in a comment that “rich and influential men have evaded justice for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the opportunity to come clean and deliver accountability for the survivors. We will not stop advocating for responsibility and clarity for victims of Epstein and his network of accomplices.”

Another supporter, a Virginia Democrat, said that after listening to testimony to the committee from Epstein’s accusers, as well as news accounts of leaked documents, “it is crucial that Andrew works together with the ongoing investigation. If he is not guilty, then he can clear his name.”

The lawmaker continued: “And if not, our investigation will reveal that, and the victims will receive belated accountability. The royal household’s actions taking away Andrew of his honors show there is further to this situation.”

The letter was sent on the same day the British king publicly stripped Mountbatten Windsor of his princely title. Charles III formally made the alteration – which had been announced a week ago – by issuing a “official document” which the monarch’s office made public in the Gazette, the UK’s public registry.