House Committee Seeks Interview with Prince Andrew in Epstein Probe
A American legislative committee probing sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein has formally written to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, once Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he undergo an interview as part of its probe into Epstein’s criminal operations.
In a letter made public on Thursday, a California congressman, the leading Democrat on the House oversight committee, asked that King Charles III’s sibling help with its inquiry.
The formal request to respond to queries arrives a week after Mountbatten Windsor was lost his royal title and opted to surrender his property in Windsor.
Records and Allegations
Mountbatten Windsor’s name appears in papers and travel logs subpoenaed from Epstein’s estate and made public by the committee. He has also been charged by one of Epstein’s victims, the late Virginia Giuffre, of misconduct.
“The panel will probe claims of abuse by Mountbatten Windsor, and will seek data on Epstein’s operations, associates, and connections based on the men’s enduring and well-documented friendship,” the committee said in a statement.
It requested details from Mountbatten Windsor on details of his association with Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York jail cell in 2019. Andrew has always strongly denied any wrongdoing.
Substance of the Request
“It has been documented that your relationship with Mr Epstein started in 1999 and that you continued associating through and after his 2008 conviction for soliciting minors for sex work,” the letter said.
It continued: “It has also been alleged that you went with Epstein to his New York home, the Queen’s estate 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, along with the recently revealed 2011 email exchange in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further supports our suspicion that you may have key insights about the crimes 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 answer by 20 November.
Previous Comments and Assistance
The letter comes a week after another Democrat on the committee stated: “Andrew should be asked to testify before the committee. The citizens should be able to know who was harming women and minors alongside Epstein.”
However, the representative does not have the power to legally require the former prince and Congress itself cannot compel evidence from a non-US citizen.
In 2020, US officials said that Mountbatten Windsor neglected to reply to US requests for an discussion. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that lawyers and the FBI had reached out to Andrew’s attorneys to follow up on his earlier promise that he was “willing to help any relevant law enforcement agency”.
“It’s just for people to know whether Prince Andrew has honored with that pledge,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “given absolutely no cooperation”.
Demands for Justice
The congressman said in a comment that “affluent and influential men have escaped accountability for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the opportunity to tell the truth and provide justice for the survivors. Oversight Democrats will not cease advocating for answerability and openness for survivors of Epstein and his gang of co-conspirators.”
Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after listening to testimony to the committee from Epstein’s survivors, as well as media coverage of released files, “it is crucial that Andrew assists with the active inquiry. If he is innocent, then he can clear his name.”
The lawmaker stated further: “And if not, our investigation will show that, and the survivors will receive belated justice. The Royal Family’s actions taking away Andrew of his honors indicate there is additional to this case.”
The letter was sent on the same day the British king officially stripped Mountbatten Windsor of his princely title. Charles III officially made the change – which had been revealed a week ago – by issuing a “royal decree” which the crown office released in the Gazette, the UK’s government journal.