House Committee Seeks Questioning with Prince Andrew in Jeffrey Epstein Investigation

A American legislative committee probing pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein has reached out to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, requesting that he undergo questioning as part of its investigation into Epstein’s illegal activities.

In a communication released on Thursday, a California congressman, the leading Democrat on the House oversight committee, urged that King Charles III’s sibling cooperate with its inquiry.

The official demand to answer questions arrives a week after Mountbatten Windsor was relieved of his royal title and consented to give up his property in Windsor.

Files and Accusations

Mountbatten Windsor’s name is listed in papers and aviation records subpoenaed from Epstein’s estate and publicly released by the committee. He has also been charged by one of Epstein’s victims, the late Virginia Giuffre, of misconduct.

“The oversight committee will examine allegations of abuse by Mountbatten Windsor, and will seek data on Epstein’s operations, associates, and accomplices based on the men’s enduring and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a announcement.

It sought information from Mountbatten Windsor on details of his relationship with Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York jail cell in 2019. Andrew has repeatedly strongly denied any wrongdoing.

Content of the Request

“It has been documented that your association with Mr Epstein commenced in 1999 and that you stayed connected through and after his 2008 sentencing for trafficking underage girls for commercial sex acts,” the letter said.

It continued: “It has also been claimed that you traveled with Epstein to his New York property, the Queen’s estate at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s private island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been alleged of assaulting underage individuals. This close relationship with Mr Epstein, coupled with the freshly uncovered 2011 email exchange in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further supports our suspicion that you may have important details about the offenses committed by Mr Epstein and his partners in crime.”

A notification regarding the letter said it was co-signed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and asks a answer by 20 November.

Previous Comments and Cooperation

The letter comes a week after another Democrat on the committee stated: “Andrew should be summoned to appear before the panel. The citizens has the right to know who was abusing women and young girls alongside Epstein.”

However, the congressman does not have the ability to subpoena the ex-royal and Congress itself cannot compel statements from a overseas individual.

In 2020, US agencies said that Mountbatten Windsor neglected to reply to US requests for an interview. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that authorities and the FBI had approached Andrew’s lawyers to check on his previous pledge that he was “prepared to help any appropriate law enforcement agency”.

“It’s reasonable for people to know whether Prince Andrew has followed through with that pledge,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “provided no cooperation”.

Calls for Accountability

The lawmaker said in a announcement that “affluent and powerful men have evaded justice for far too long. Now, ex- Prince Andrew has the chance to be honest and deliver redress for the victims. We will not cease fighting for responsibility and openness for victims of Epstein and his network of accomplices.”

Another signatory, a Virginia Democrat, said that after listening to evidence to the committee from Epstein’s victims, as well as news accounts of disclosed papers, “it is crucial that Andrew cooperates with the current inquiry. If he is not guilty, then he can prove his innocence.”

The lawmaker added: “And if not, our probe will demonstrate that, and the survivors will receive belated justice. The monarchy’s actions removing Andrew of his honors suggest there is more to this situation.”

The letter was issued on the same day the British king formally removed Mountbatten Windsor of his princely title. Charles III formally made the adjustment – which had been revealed a week ago – by issuing a “royal decree” which the royal office released in the Gazette, the UK’s government journal.