House Panel Requests Interview with Prince Andrew in Epstein Investigation

A US congressional panel looking into sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein has reached out to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he undergo a deposition as part of its inquiry into Epstein’s illegal activities.

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

The official demand to respond to queries follows a week after Mountbatten Windsor was relieved of his royal title and consented to surrender his rented residence in Windsor.

Documents and Claims

Mountbatten Windsor’s name appears in papers and flight logs obtained from Epstein’s estate and publicly released by the committee. He has also been alleged by one of Epstein’s victims, the late Virginia Giuffre, of misconduct.

“The committee will probe claims of wrongdoing by Mountbatten Windsor, and will request information on Epstein’s network, network, and associates based on the men’s long-term and thoroughly recorded friendship,” the committee said in a announcement.

It requested particulars from Mountbatten Windsor on specifics of his relationship with Epstein, who killed himself in a New York prison cell in 2019. Andrew has always strongly denied any impropriety.

Substance of the Communication

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

It stated further: “It has also been reported that you journeyed with Epstein to his New York residence, the Queen’s estate at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s secluded island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been accused of assaulting underage individuals. This strong bond with Mr Epstein, coupled with the recently revealed 2011 electronic correspondence in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further supports our concern that you may have key insights about the wrongdoings committed by Mr Epstein and his accomplices.”

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

Past Comments and Assistance

The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee told: “Andrew should be asked to testify before the oversight committee. The public should be able to know who was abusing women and minors alongside Epstein.”

However, the representative does not hold the authority to legally require the former prince and Congress itself cannot compel evidence from a foreign national.

In 2020, US agencies said that Mountbatten Windsor did not cooperate to US requests 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 attorneys to follow up on his earlier promise that he was “ready to help any suitable law enforcement agency”.

“It’s just for people to know whether Prince Andrew has fulfilled with that public commitment,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “offered no cooperation”.

Demands for Accountability

The representative said in a announcement that “wealthy and powerful men have evaded accountability for far too long. Now, ex- Prince Andrew has the chance to come clean and deliver accountability for the victims. We will not halt fighting for accountability and openness for victims of Epstein and his group of partners.”

Another signatory, a Virginia Democrat, said that after receiving testimony to the committee from Epstein’s accusers, as well as media coverage of leaked documents, “it is essential that Andrew works together with the ongoing investigation. If he is not guilty, then he can prove his innocence.”

The lawmaker stated further: “And if not, our probe will reveal that, and the survivors will receive long overdue redress. The monarchy’s actions removing Andrew of his styles indicate there is more to this story.”

The letter was sent on the same day the British king formally stripped Mountbatten Windsor of his HRH style. Charles III publicly made the alteration – which had been declared a week ago – by issuing a “letters patent” which the monarch’s office published in the Gazette, the UK’s government journal.