Congressional Committee Asks for Questioning with Andrew in Epstein Investigation
A US congressional committee probing pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein has reached out to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, previously Britain’s Prince Andrew, requesting that he submit to a deposition as part of its inquiry into Epstein’s criminal operations.
In a document published on Thursday, a California congressman, the leading Democrat on the House investigative committee, requested that King Charles III’s brother cooperate with its inquiry.
The official demand to provide testimony follows a week after Mountbatten Windsor was stripped of his HRH style and agreed to surrender his property in Windsor.
Records and Accusations
Mountbatten Windsor’s name features in documents and aviation records subpoenaed 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 sexual assault.
“The panel will examine claims of misconduct by Mountbatten Windsor, and will demand details on Epstein’s activities, circle, and accomplices based on the men’s long-term and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a statement.
It demanded particulars from Mountbatten Windsor on details of his friendship with Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York jail cell in 2019. Andrew has always strongly denied any impropriety.
Substance of the Request
“It has been documented that your relationship with Mr Epstein began in 1999 and that you stayed connected through and after his 2008 conviction for trafficking underage girls for commercial sex acts,” the letter said.
It stated further: “It has also been claimed that you traveled with Epstein to his New York home, the Queen’s estate at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s private island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been charged of abusing minors. This intimate friendship with Mr Epstein, combined with the recently revealed 2011 electronic correspondence in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further supports our suspicion that you may have valuable information about the offenses committed by Mr Epstein and his accomplices.”
A statement regarding the letter said it was co-signed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and requests a answer by 20 November.
Past Statements and Collaboration
The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee told: “Andrew should be summoned to testify before the panel. The public has the right to know who was assaulting women and underage individuals alongside Epstein.”
However, the representative does not hold the power to compel the ex-royal and Congress itself cannot oblige evidence from a foreign national.
In 2020, US officials said that Mountbatten Windsor neglected to reply to US appeals for an interview. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that lawyers and the FBI had contacted Andrew’s lawyers to check on his public commitment that he was “willing to help any relevant law enforcement agency”.
“It’s reasonable for people to know whether Prince Andrew has followed through with that assurance,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “offered zero cooperation”.
Demands for Accountability
The lawmaker said in a comment that “affluent and well-connected men have avoided accountability for far too long. Now, one-time Prince Andrew has the option to tell the truth and secure redress for the victims. Oversight Democrats will not cease advocating for accountability and openness for victims of Epstein and his group of partners.”
Another signatory, a Virginia Democrat, said that after hearing evidence to the committee from Epstein’s survivors, as well as public reporting of leaked documents, “it is essential that Andrew works together with the active investigation. If he is innocent, then he can vindicate himself.”
The lawmaker stated further: “And if not, our probe will demonstrate that, and the affected individuals will receive long overdue justice. The Royal Family’s actions taking away Andrew of his styles indicate there is additional to this situation.”
The letter came on the same day the British king publicly stripped Mountbatten Windsor of his princely title. Charles III formally made the change – which had been declared a week ago – by issuing a “official document” which the monarch’s office made public in the Gazette, the UK’s government journal.
