House Committee Seeks Interview with Prince Andrew in Epstein Investigation
A US congressional committee looking into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has sent a letter to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, once Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he participate in a deposition as part of its probe into Epstein’s illegal activities.
In a letter made public on Thursday, a US representative, the leading Democrat on the House oversight panel, urged that King Charles III’s younger brother assist with its inquiry.
The written appeal to provide testimony follows a week after Mountbatten Windsor was stripped of his HRH style and consented to surrender his leased home in Windsor.
Records and Allegations
Mountbatten Windsor’s name features in documents and aviation records subpoenaed from Epstein’s estate and publicly released by the committee. He has also been charged by one of Epstein’s victims, the late Virginia Giuffre, of misconduct.
“The committee will investigate allegations of misconduct by Mountbatten Windsor, and will request information on Epstein’s operations, network, and associates based on the men’s long-term and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a statement.
It demanded details from Mountbatten Windsor on specifics of his relationship with Epstein, who took his own life in a New York prison cell in 2019. Andrew has always strongly denied any wrongdoing.
Details of the Request
“It has been documented that your friendship with Mr Epstein commenced in 1999 and that you continued associating through and after his 2008 guilty verdict for soliciting minors for commercial sex acts,” the letter said.
It stated further: “It has also been reported that you went with Epstein to his New York property, the Queen’s home at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s private island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been charged of assaulting underage individuals. This intimate friendship with Mr Epstein, combined with the recently revealed 2011 email exchange in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further confirms our belief that you may have important details about the crimes committed by Mr Epstein and his partners in crime.”
A notification regarding the letter said it was co-signed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and requests a reply by 20 November.
Previous Remarks and Cooperation
The letter arrives a week after another Democrat on the committee told: “Andrew should be called to testify before the panel. The people deserves to know who was harming women and underage individuals alongside Epstein.”
However, the representative does not hold the ability to compel the duke and Congress itself cannot oblige statements from a foreign national.
In 2020, US authorities said that Mountbatten Windsor failed to respond to US demands 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 inquire on his public commitment that he was “prepared to help any suitable law enforcement agency”.
“It’s fair for people to know whether Prince Andrew has fulfilled with that pledge,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “offered zero cooperation”.
Demands for Transparency
The lawmaker said in a announcement that “wealthy and powerful men have avoided accountability for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the opportunity to tell the truth and deliver justice for the survivors. We will not halt pushing for accountability and openness for those affected of Epstein and his group of accomplices.”
Another supporter, a Virginia Democrat, said that after hearing evidence to the committee from Epstein’s survivors, as well as public reporting of leaked documents, “it is crucial that Andrew assists with the ongoing inquiry. If he is not guilty, then he can vindicate himself.”
The lawmaker added: “And if not, our examination will show that, and the victims will receive long overdue accountability. The Royal Family’s actions removing Andrew of his titles show there is more to this situation.”
The letter was issued on the same day the British king officially revoked Mountbatten Windsor of his HRH style. Charles III officially made the change – which had been announced a week ago – by issuing a “royal decree” which the royal office released in the Gazette, the UK’s public registry.