A American legislative panel investigating pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein has sent a letter to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, once Britain’s Prince Andrew, asking that he submit to questioning as part of its probe into Epstein’s criminal operations.
In a communication made public on Thursday, a lawmaker, the senior Democrat on the House oversight panel, asked that King Charles III’s younger brother help with its probe.
The written appeal to respond to queries comes a week after Mountbatten Windsor was stripped of his HRH style and consented to give up his rented residence in Windsor.
Documents and Accusations
Mountbatten Windsor’s name is listed in papers and aviation records obtained from Epstein’s estate and made public by the committee. He has also been alleged by one of Epstein’s victims, the late Virginia Giuffre, of abuse.
“The panel will examine claims of misconduct by Mountbatten Windsor, and will demand data on Epstein’s network, network, and connections based on the men’s longstanding and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a statement.
It requested details from Mountbatten Windsor on details of his relationship with Epstein, who took his own life in a New York prison cell in 2019. Andrew has always categorically denied any impropriety.
Details of the Letter
“It has been widely reported that your relationship with Mr Epstein commenced in 1999 and that you stayed connected through and after his 2008 sentencing for procuring minors for commercial sex acts,” the letter said.
It stated further: “It has also been claimed that you went with Epstein to his New York property, the Queen’s residence at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s personal island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been charged of harming young girls. This intimate friendship with Mr Epstein, combined with the freshly uncovered 2011 digital communication in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further confirms our suspicion that you may have important details about the wrongdoings committed by Mr Epstein and his partners in crime.”
A statement regarding the letter said it was endorsed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and demands a reply by 20 November.
Earlier Remarks and Collaboration
The letter comes a week after another Democrat on the committee commented: “Andrew should be summoned to appear before the oversight committee. The citizens has the right to know who was harming women and underage individuals alongside Epstein.”
However, the congressman does not possess the power to compel the former prince and Congress itself cannot oblige evidence from a overseas individual.
In 2020, US agencies said that Mountbatten Windsor failed to respond to US requests for an meeting. 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 check on his earlier promise that he was “ready to help any suitable law enforcement agency”.
“It’s reasonable for people to know whether Prince Andrew has fulfilled with that assurance,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “given zero cooperation”.
Appeals for Transparency
The lawmaker said in a comment that “affluent and well-connected men have evaded accountability for far too long. Now, ex- Prince Andrew has the option to tell the truth and deliver accountability for the victims. The committee will not stop fighting for responsibility and clarity for survivors of Epstein and his group of accomplices.”
Another signatory, a Virginia Democrat, said that after listening to evidence to the committee from Epstein’s victims, as well as public reporting of released files, “it is vital that Andrew cooperates with the ongoing inquiry. If he is not guilty, then he can vindicate himself.”
The lawmaker stated further: “And if not, our investigation will show that, and the affected individuals will receive belated accountability. The royal household’s actions stripping Andrew of his titles show there is more to this situation.”
The letter was issued on the same day the British king publicly removed Mountbatten Windsor of his princely title. Charles III officially made the adjustment – which had been announced a week ago – by issuing a “royal decree” which the crown office published in the Gazette, the UK’s public registry.
