Congressional Panel Seeks Interview with the Duke of York in Epstein Probe
A US congressional body probing convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has formally written to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, requesting that he submit to an interview as part of its investigation into Epstein’s illegal activities.
In a communication published on Thursday, a lawmaker, the top Democrat on the House oversight committee, requested that King Charles III’s brother help with its inquiry.
The written appeal to answer questions arrives a week after Mountbatten Windsor was lost his royal title and consented to give up his leased home in Windsor.
Records and Accusations
Mountbatten Windsor’s name appears in documents and flight logs secured from Epstein’s estate and disclosed by the committee. He has also been charged by one of Epstein’s accusers, the late Virginia Giuffre, of sexual assault.
“The panel will probe accusations of abuse by Mountbatten Windsor, and will demand information on Epstein’s network, circle, and associates based on the men’s longstanding and well-documented friendship,” the committee said in a statement.
It demanded information from Mountbatten Windsor on specifics of his association with Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York prison cell in 2019. Andrew has always categorically denied any wrongdoing.
Content of the Communication
“It has been publicly reported that your association with Mr Epstein began in 1999 and that you continued associating through and after his 2008 guilty verdict for trafficking underage girls for prostitution,” the letter said.
It stated further: “It has also been reported that you went with Epstein to his New York residence, the Queen’s estate at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s secluded island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been accused of abusing minors. This close relationship with Mr Epstein, combined with the newly disclosed 2011 email exchange in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further confirms our belief that you may have important details about the offenses committed by Mr Epstein and his accomplices.”
A notification regarding the letter said it was supported by 13 other Democrats on the committee and demands a answer by 20 November.
Earlier Statements and Collaboration
The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee commented: “Andrew should be summoned to give evidence before the panel. The public should be able to know who was assaulting women and underage individuals alongside Epstein.”
However, the lawmaker does not possess the power to subpoena the ex-royal and Congress itself cannot force evidence from a non-US citizen.
In 2020, US officials said that Mountbatten Windsor did not reply to US demands for an meeting. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that prosecutors and the FBI had contacted Andrew’s lawyers to inquire on his previous pledge that he was “prepared to help any suitable law enforcement agency”.
“It’s just for people to know whether Prince Andrew has fulfilled with that assurance,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “offered absolutely no cooperation”.
Demands for Accountability
The lawmaker said in a statement that “affluent and influential men have escaped justice for far too long. Now, one-time Prince Andrew has the chance to come clean and provide justice for the affected individuals. We will not stop pushing for accountability and transparency for victims of Epstein and his network of partners.”
Another supporter, a Virginia Democrat, said that after hearing evidence to the committee from Epstein’s survivors, as well as media coverage of released files, “it is vital that Andrew cooperates with the current probe. If he is blameless, then he can vindicate himself.”
The lawmaker continued: “And if not, our examination will demonstrate that, and the affected individuals will receive much-delayed accountability. The royal household’s actions removing Andrew of his titles show there is more to this situation.”
The letter was issued on the same day the British king formally stripped Mountbatten Windsor of his HRH style. Charles III formally made the alteration – which had been declared a week ago – by issuing a “letters patent” which the monarch’s office released in the Gazette, the UK’s official public record.