Congressional Committee Requests Interview with Andrew in Epstein Probe
A US congressional body looking into sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein has reached out to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, once Britain’s Prince Andrew, asking that he undergo an interview as part of its probe into Epstein’s illegal activities.
In a communication made public on Thursday, a California congressman, the top Democrat on the House investigative committee, urged that King Charles III’s younger brother cooperate with its investigation.
The formal request to provide testimony arrives a week after Mountbatten Windsor was lost his princely title and agreed to give up his rented residence in Windsor.
Documents and Allegations
Mountbatten Windsor’s name appears in papers and aviation records secured from Epstein’s estate and publicly released by the committee. He has also been charged by one of Epstein’s accusers, the late Virginia Giuffre, of abuse.
“The panel will probe allegations of abuse by Mountbatten Windsor, and will request information on Epstein’s operations, associates, and connections based on the men’s long-term and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a statement.
It requested details from Mountbatten Windsor on particulars of his association with Epstein, who killed himself in a New York detention facility in 2019. Andrew has repeatedly categorically denied any wrongdoing.
Content of the Request
“It has been publicly reported that your relationship 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 added: “It has also been claimed that you went with Epstein to his New York residence, the Queen’s residence at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s personal island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been accused of assaulting minors. This intimate friendship with Mr Epstein, along with the recently revealed 2011 electronic correspondence 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 accomplices.”
A announcement regarding the letter said it was endorsed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and asks a answer by 20 November.
Previous Comments and Collaboration
The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee stated: “Andrew should be summoned to testify before the committee. The citizens should be able to know who was abusing women and minors alongside Epstein.”
However, the representative does not possess the ability to compel the former prince and Congress itself cannot compel evidence from a non-US citizen.
In 2020, US officials said that Mountbatten Windsor neglected to reply to US demands for an interview. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that lawyers and the FBI had contacted Andrew’s attorneys to follow up on his earlier promise 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 assurance,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “offered zero cooperation”.
Demands for Justice
The lawmaker said in a comment that “affluent and well-connected men have escaped the law for far too long. Now, one-time Prince Andrew has the chance to come clean and provide redress for the survivors. We will not cease advocating for accountability and clarity for survivors of Epstein and his network of accomplices.”
Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after listening to evidence to the committee from Epstein’s survivors, as well as news accounts of leaked documents, “it is crucial that Andrew cooperates with the active inquiry. If he is blameless, then he can vindicate himself.”
The lawmaker continued: “And if not, our investigation will demonstrate that, and the victims will receive belated redress. The monarchy’s actions stripping Andrew of his honors indicate there is more to this situation.”
The letter was sent on the same day the British king formally stripped Mountbatten Windsor of his HRH style. Charles III publicly made the adjustment – which had been announced a week ago – by issuing a “letters patent” which the crown office published in the Gazette, the UK’s government journal.
