House Panel Asks for Interview with Prince Andrew in Jeffrey Epstein Probe
A US congressional panel investigating sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein has formally written to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he submit to an interview as part of its inquiry into Epstein’s wrongdoings.
In a letter made public on Thursday, a California congressman, the senior Democrat on the House oversight panel, requested that King Charles III’s sibling cooperate with its investigation.
The formal request to respond to queries follows a week after Mountbatten Windsor was lost his royal title and opted to vacate his property in Windsor.
Records and Allegations
Mountbatten Windsor’s name appears in documents and aviation records subpoenaed 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 sexual assault.
“The committee will examine accusations of misconduct by Mountbatten Windsor, and will request details on Epstein’s activities, network, and accomplices based on the men’s longstanding and well-documented friendship,” the committee said in a announcement.
It requested details from Mountbatten Windsor on particulars of his friendship with Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York detention facility in 2019. Andrew has repeatedly strongly denied any wrongdoing.
Substance of the Request
“It has been documented that your association with Mr Epstein started in 1999 and that you continued associating through and after his 2008 guilty verdict for trafficking underage girls for sex work,” the letter said.
It added: “It has also been reported that you went 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 alleged of abusing young girls. This strong bond with Mr Epstein, combined with the freshly uncovered 2011 email exchange in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further confirms our suspicion that you may have important details about the offenses committed by Mr Epstein and his partners in crime.”
A announcement regarding the letter said it was co-signed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and demands a reply by 20 November.
Previous Remarks and Cooperation
The letter comes a week after another Democrat on the committee commented: “Andrew should be asked to appear before the oversight committee. The people deserves to know who was abusing women and young girls alongside Epstein.”
However, the congressman does not possess the ability to subpoena the ex-royal and Congress itself cannot oblige testimony from a overseas individual.
In 2020, US authorities said that Mountbatten Windsor neglected to cooperate to US requests 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 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 followed through with that pledge,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “given no cooperation”.
Appeals for Justice
The lawmaker said in a comment that “wealthy and well-connected men have evaded accountability for far too long. Now, ex- Prince Andrew has the option to tell the truth and provide accountability for the affected individuals. Oversight Democrats will not halt advocating for accountability and openness for victims of Epstein and his network of partners.”
Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after hearing accounts to the committee from Epstein’s accusers, as well as media coverage of leaked documents, “it is essential that Andrew assists with the ongoing inquiry. If he is innocent, then he can clear his name.”
The lawmaker continued: “And if not, our probe will reveal that, and the affected individuals will receive belated accountability. The Royal Family’s actions removing Andrew of his titles show there is further to this case.”
The letter came on the same day the British king formally stripped Mountbatten Windsor of his royal title. Charles III publicly made the adjustment – which had been revealed a week ago – by issuing a “official document” which the royal office published in the Gazette, the UK’s government journal.