🔗 Share this article House Committee Requests Questioning with Prince Andrew in Jeffrey Epstein Inquiry A US congressional committee looking into sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein has sent a letter to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, asking that he submit to questioning as part of its inquiry into Epstein’s wrongdoings. In a document made public on Thursday, a lawmaker, the leading Democrat on the House investigative committee, requested that King Charles III’s brother assist with its investigation. The formal request to answer questions comes a week after Mountbatten Windsor was stripped of his royal title and opted to vacate his property in Windsor. Records and Accusations Mountbatten Windsor’s name is listed in papers and travel logs obtained from Epstein’s estate and publicly released by the committee. He has also been accused by one of Epstein’s victims, the late Virginia Giuffre, of misconduct. “The panel will examine allegations of misconduct by Mountbatten Windsor, and will demand data on Epstein’s operations, network, and associates based on the men’s longstanding and well-documented friendship,” the committee said in a press release. It sought information from Mountbatten Windsor on particulars of his association with Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York jail cell in 2019. Andrew has consistently categorically denied any wrongdoing. Details of the Letter “It has been publicly reported that your relationship with Mr Epstein began in 1999 and that you continued associating through and after his 2008 conviction for trafficking underage girls for commercial sex acts,” the letter said. It added: “It has also been alleged that you journeyed with Epstein to his New York home, the Queen’s residence at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s private island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been charged of harming minors. This intimate friendship with Mr Epstein, combined with the recently revealed 2011 digital communication in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further bolsters our concern that you may have valuable information about the crimes committed by Mr Epstein and his accomplices.” A notification regarding the letter said it was supported by 13 other Democrats on the committee and asks a reply by 20 November. Earlier Remarks and Collaboration The letter arrives a week after another Democrat on the committee commented: “Andrew should be asked to give evidence before the committee. The public deserves to know who was abusing women and young girls alongside Epstein.” However, the congressman does not possess the authority to legally require the former prince and Congress itself cannot compel statements 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 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 honored with that public commitment,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “provided zero cooperation”. Demands for Accountability The representative said in a announcement that “affluent and influential men have escaped the law for far too long. Now, one-time Prince Andrew has the option to come clean and provide redress for the survivors. We will not stop fighting for accountability and openness for those affected of Epstein and his gang of accomplices.” Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after receiving testimony to the committee from Epstein’s accusers, as well as public reporting of disclosed papers, “it is vital that Andrew works together with the active probe. If he is innocent, then he can prove his innocence.” The lawmaker continued: “And if not, our examination will show that, and the victims will receive much-delayed accountability. The royal household’s actions removing Andrew of his styles show there is more to this story.” The letter was sent on the same day the British king publicly revoked Mountbatten Windsor of his HRH style. Charles III formally made the alteration – which had been revealed a week ago – by issuing a “royal decree” which the monarch’s office released in the Gazette, the UK’s government journal.