Congressional Committee Seeks Interview with Prince Andrew in Epstein Investigation
A US congressional body looking into pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein has formally written to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly 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 senior Democrat on the House investigative committee, urged that King Charles III’s brother assist with its probe.
The formal request to provide testimony arrives a week after Mountbatten Windsor was lost his royal title and consented to surrender his rented residence in Windsor.
Records and Allegations
Mountbatten Windsor’s name is listed in papers and aviation records secured from Epstein’s estate and disclosed by the committee. He has also been alleged by one of Epstein’s accusers, the late Virginia Giuffre, of abuse.
“The committee will probe allegations of abuse by Mountbatten Windsor, and will seek information on Epstein’s network, associates, and associates based on the men’s long-term and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a announcement.
It demanded information from Mountbatten Windsor on details of his association with Epstein, who killed himself in a New York jail cell in 2019. Andrew has always strongly denied any wrongdoing.
Content of the Request
“It has been widely reported that your relationship with Mr Epstein started in 1999 and that you stayed connected through and after his 2008 sentencing for soliciting minors for commercial sex acts,” the letter said.
It added: “It has also been alleged that you traveled with Epstein to his New York home, the Queen’s residence at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s secluded island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been accused of harming young girls. This close relationship with Mr Epstein, combined with the freshly uncovered 2011 email exchange in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further supports our concern that you may have key insights about the crimes committed by Mr Epstein and his partners in crime.”
A announcement regarding the letter said it was co-signed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and requests a reply by 20 November.
Earlier Comments and Cooperation
The letter comes a week after another Democrat on the committee commented: “Andrew should be summoned to give evidence before the oversight committee. The people deserves to know who was abusing women and minors alongside Epstein.”
However, the lawmaker does not hold the power to compel the duke and Congress itself cannot compel evidence from a foreign national.
In 2020, US officials said that Mountbatten Windsor did not respond 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 legal team to inquire on his previous pledge that he was “ready to help any suitable law enforcement agency”.
“It’s just for people to know whether Prince Andrew has followed through with that assurance,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “provided zero cooperation”.
Appeals for Accountability
The congressman said in a announcement that “rich and influential men have escaped justice for far too long. Now, ex- Prince Andrew has the chance to tell the truth and secure redress for the victims. Oversight Democrats will not stop fighting for accountability and openness for survivors of Epstein and his network of co-conspirators.”
Another signatory, a Virginia Democrat, said that after hearing testimony to the committee from Epstein’s victims, as well as public reporting of released files, “it is crucial that Andrew assists with the active probe. If he is blameless, then he can clear his name.”
The lawmaker stated further: “And if not, our investigation will demonstrate that, and the survivors will receive long overdue accountability. The monarchy’s actions removing Andrew of his titles indicate there is additional to this situation.”
The letter came on the same day the British king officially stripped Mountbatten Windsor of his princely title. Charles III formally made the adjustment – which had been revealed a week ago – by issuing a “official document” which the crown office made public in the Gazette, the UK’s government journal.
