Congressional Committee Seeks Questioning with Prince Andrew in Jeffrey Epstein Inquiry
A US congressional panel looking into pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein has reached out to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, previously Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he participate in an interview as part of its investigation into Epstein’s wrongdoings.
In a letter published on Thursday, a California congressman, the leading Democrat on the House investigative committee, requested that King Charles III’s sibling help with its probe.
The official demand to provide testimony comes a week after Mountbatten Windsor was relieved of his royal title and agreed to surrender his property in Windsor.
Records and Claims
Mountbatten Windsor’s name features in papers and travel logs obtained from Epstein’s estate and disclosed by the committee. He has also been accused by one of Epstein’s accusers, the late Virginia Giuffre, of misconduct.
“The panel will examine allegations of abuse by Mountbatten Windsor, and will request information on Epstein’s network, network, and accomplices based on the men’s long-term and thoroughly recorded friendship,” the committee said in a press release.
It sought information from Mountbatten Windsor on details of his association with Epstein, who killed himself in a New York detention facility in 2019. Andrew has repeatedly vehemently rejected any impropriety.
Details of the Letter
“It has been documented that your relationship with Mr Epstein commenced in 1999 and that you continued associating through and after his 2008 guilty verdict for soliciting minors 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 residence at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s private island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been accused of harming minors. This close relationship with Mr Epstein, combined with the recently revealed 2011 email exchange in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further bolsters our suspicion 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 requests a answer by 20 November.
Earlier Statements and Collaboration
The letter comes a week after another Democrat on the committee commented: “Andrew should be called to testify before the committee. The citizens has the right to know who was abusing women and underage individuals alongside Epstein.”
However, the lawmaker does not hold the power to legally require the ex-royal and Congress itself cannot oblige testimony from a overseas individual.
In 2020, US agencies said that Mountbatten Windsor neglected to reply to US appeals for an discussion. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that prosecutors and the FBI had contacted Andrew’s lawyers to follow up on his previous pledge that he was “prepared to help any appropriate 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 no cooperation”.
Demands for Accountability
The congressman said in a announcement that “rich and powerful men have evaded justice for far too long. Now, ex- Prince Andrew has the chance to come clean and secure accountability for the victims. The committee will not halt fighting for answerability and transparency for those affected of Epstein and his gang of co-conspirators.”
Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after receiving testimony to the committee from Epstein’s victims, as well as news accounts of disclosed papers, “it is vital that Andrew cooperates with the active investigation. If he is not guilty, then he can prove his innocence.”
The lawmaker continued: “And if not, our probe will demonstrate that, and the affected individuals will receive belated redress. The royal household’s actions taking away Andrew of his titles show there is additional to this case.”
The letter was sent on the same day the British king formally revoked 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 monarch’s office released in the Gazette, the UK’s official public record.