🔗 Share this article House Panel Requests Interview with Andrew in Epstein Probe A US congressional body investigating pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein has formally written to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he participate in questioning as part of its investigation into Epstein’s illegal activities. In a document released on Thursday, a California congressman, the senior Democrat on the House oversight panel, asked that King Charles III’s sibling cooperate with its inquiry. The formal request to provide testimony comes a week after Mountbatten Windsor was relieved of his royal title and agreed to vacate his property in Windsor. Documents and Allegations Mountbatten Windsor’s name features in papers and flight logs secured from Epstein’s estate and made public by the committee. He has also been charged by one of Epstein’s survivors, the late Virginia Giuffre, of abuse. “The oversight committee will examine accusations of wrongdoing by Mountbatten Windsor, and will request details on Epstein’s operations, circle, and accomplices based on the men’s long-term and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a announcement. It sought details from Mountbatten Windsor on particulars of his association with Epstein, who killed himself in a New York prison cell in 2019. Andrew has repeatedly vehemently rejected any impropriety. Substance of the Request “It has been documented that your relationship with Mr Epstein began in 1999 and that you continued associating through and after his 2008 sentencing for procuring minors for prostitution,” the letter said. It stated further: “It has also been claimed that you journeyed with Epstein to his New York residence, the Queen’s estate at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s personal island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been alleged of assaulting young girls. This strong bond with Mr Epstein, coupled with the freshly uncovered 2011 digital communication in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further confirms our concern that you may have valuable information about the wrongdoings committed by Mr Epstein and his co-conspirators.” A announcement regarding the letter said it was co-signed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and asks a answer by 20 November. Previous Remarks and Assistance The letter arrives a week after another Democrat on the committee stated: “Andrew should be called to give evidence before the committee. The people has the right to know who was harming women and young girls alongside Epstein.” However, the representative does not have the power to compel the ex-royal and Congress itself cannot oblige testimony from a non-US citizen. In 2020, US authorities said that Mountbatten Windsor failed to respond to US demands for an discussion. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that prosecutors and the FBI had approached Andrew’s lawyers to follow up on his public commitment that he was “ready to help any relevant 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 “provided no cooperation”. Calls for Accountability The congressman said in a announcement that “rich and well-connected men have avoided the law for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the chance to tell the truth and secure accountability for the survivors. We will not halt fighting for responsibility and transparency for those affected of Epstein and his group of partners.” Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after listening to accounts to the committee from Epstein’s survivors, as well as public reporting of released files, “it is vital that Andrew assists with the active probe. If he is innocent, then he can clear his name.” The lawmaker added: “And if not, our probe will reveal that, and the survivors will receive belated justice. The monarchy’s actions stripping Andrew of his honors indicate there is more to this story.” The letter came on the same day the British king publicly removed Mountbatten Windsor of his royal title. Charles III officially made the alteration – which had been revealed a week ago – by issuing a “royal decree” which the royal office released in the Gazette, the UK’s official public record.