🔗 Share this article

A US congressional panel investigating convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has sent a letter to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, once Britain’s Prince Andrew, requesting that he undergo an interview as part of its investigation into Epstein’s criminal operations.

In a communication made public on Thursday, a lawmaker, the senior Democrat on the House oversight committee, asked that King Charles III’s sibling cooperate with its inquiry.

The written appeal to provide testimony follows a week after Mountbatten Windsor was stripped of his HRH style and opted to vacate his leased home in Windsor.

Documents and Claims

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

“The panel will examine accusations of wrongdoing by Mountbatten Windsor, and will demand information on Epstein’s network, circle, and connections based on the men’s long-term and well-documented friendship,” the committee said in a statement.

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

Content of the Letter

“It has been publicly reported that your association with Mr Epstein began in 1999 and that you stayed connected through and after his 2008 conviction for soliciting minors for prostitution,” the letter said.

It stated further: “It has also been claimed that you went with Epstein to his New York home, the Queen’s home at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s secluded island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been charged of abusing underage individuals. This strong bond with Mr Epstein, coupled with the newly disclosed 2011 email exchange in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further confirms our belief that you may have valuable information about the offenses committed by Mr Epstein and his co-conspirators.”

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

Past Comments and Cooperation

The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee stated: “Andrew should be called to appear before the panel. The public should be able to know who was assaulting women and underage individuals alongside Epstein.”

However, the representative does not have the authority to compel the ex-royal and Congress itself cannot oblige statements from a foreign national.

In 2020, US agencies said that Mountbatten Windsor did not respond to US requests for an interview. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that authorities and the FBI had approached Andrew’s attorneys to follow up on his public commitment that he was “ready to help any relevant law enforcement agency”.

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

Demands for Accountability

The lawmaker said in a statement that “wealthy and influential men have avoided accountability for far too long. Now, one-time Prince Andrew has the option to be honest and deliver justice for the victims. Oversight Democrats will not stop fighting for responsibility and openness for survivors of Epstein and his group of partners.”

Another endorser, 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 crucial that Andrew works together with the ongoing probe. If he is not guilty, then he can prove his innocence.”

The lawmaker added: “And if not, our probe will show that, and the survivors will receive much-delayed redress. The monarchy’s actions removing Andrew of his styles suggest there is further to this story.”

The letter was sent on the same day the British king officially stripped Mountbatten Windsor of his royal title. Charles III publicly made the adjustment – which had been declared a week ago – by issuing a “official document” which the royal office made public in the Gazette, the UK’s official public record.