House Committee Asks for Interview with Andrew in Epstein Probe
A American legislative panel investigating pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein has sent a letter to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, previously Britain’s Prince Andrew, requesting that he submit to an interview as part of its inquiry into Epstein’s criminal operations.
In a document published on Thursday, a US representative, the top Democrat on the House investigative committee, urged that King Charles III’s brother cooperate with its investigation.
The written appeal to provide testimony follows a week after Mountbatten Windsor was relieved of his princely title and opted to surrender his leased home in Windsor.
Documents and Accusations
Mountbatten Windsor’s name is listed in documents and travel logs obtained from Epstein’s estate and disclosed by the committee. He has also been accused by one of Epstein’s survivors, the late Virginia Giuffre, of abuse.
“The oversight committee will investigate claims of misconduct by Mountbatten Windsor, and will seek data on Epstein’s operations, circle, and accomplices based on the men’s enduring and well-documented friendship,” the committee said in a press release.
It sought details from Mountbatten Windsor on particulars of his relationship with Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York detention facility in 2019. Andrew has consistently categorically denied any misconduct.
Details of the Communication
“It has been publicly reported that your friendship 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 continued: “It has also been claimed that you traveled with Epstein to his New York property, the Queen’s home at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s secluded island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been charged of abusing young girls. This close relationship with Mr Epstein, coupled with the recently revealed 2011 digital communication in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further bolsters our suspicion that you may have key insights about the offenses committed by Mr Epstein and his partners in crime.”
A notification regarding the letter said it was supported by 13 other Democrats on the committee and demands a answer by 20 November.
Past Statements and Cooperation
The letter comes a week after another Democrat on the committee stated: “Andrew should be asked to give evidence before the panel. The people has the right to know who was harming women and young girls alongside Epstein.”
However, the congressman does not possess the ability to subpoena the former prince and Congress itself cannot oblige testimony from a non-US citizen.
In 2020, US officials said that Mountbatten Windsor failed to cooperate to US demands for an discussion. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that authorities and the FBI had reached out to Andrew’s legal team to follow up on his previous pledge that he was “prepared to help any suitable law enforcement agency”.
“It’s fair for people to know whether Prince Andrew has honored with that public commitment,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “given zero cooperation”.
Appeals for Justice
The representative said in a announcement that “affluent and influential men have escaped accountability for far too long. Now, one-time Prince Andrew has the option to tell the truth and deliver redress for the victims. The committee will not stop advocating for answerability and clarity for those affected of Epstein and his gang of accomplices.”
Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after hearing evidence to the committee from Epstein’s survivors, as well as news accounts of released files, “it is essential that Andrew cooperates with the active investigation. If he is innocent, then he can clear his name.”
The lawmaker added: “And if not, our examination will reveal that, and the survivors will receive long overdue redress. The royal household’s actions taking away Andrew of his titles suggest there is more to this situation.”
The letter was issued on the same day the British king formally removed Mountbatten Windsor of his HRH style. Charles III publicly made the alteration – which had been revealed a week ago – by issuing a “royal decree” which the royal office published in the Gazette, the UK’s government journal.