Congressional Panel Requests Interview with Prince Andrew in Epstein Inquiry
A US congressional panel investigating pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein has formally written to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, previously Britain’s Prince Andrew, asking that he submit to a deposition as part of its investigation into Epstein’s wrongdoings.
In a communication published on Thursday, a California congressman, the senior Democrat on the House oversight panel, urged that King Charles III’s sibling cooperate with its inquiry.
The official demand to answer questions follows a week after Mountbatten Windsor was stripped of his HRH style and agreed to give up his leased home in Windsor.
Documents and Allegations
Mountbatten Windsor’s name features in papers and aviation records subpoenaed from Epstein’s estate and made public by the committee. He has also been accused by one of Epstein’s victims, the late Virginia Giuffre, of misconduct.
“The oversight committee will investigate claims of misconduct by Mountbatten Windsor, and will seek details on Epstein’s network, network, and associates based on the men’s long-term and thoroughly recorded friendship,” the committee said in a announcement.
It sought information from Mountbatten Windsor on details of his relationship with Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York jail cell in 2019. Andrew has consistently vehemently rejected any impropriety.
Details of the Communication
“It has been widely reported that your association with Mr Epstein commenced in 1999 and that you stayed connected through and after his 2008 conviction for soliciting minors for commercial sex acts,” the letter said.
It stated further: “It has also been claimed that you journeyed with Epstein to his New York home, the Queen’s home at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s private island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been alleged of assaulting underage individuals. This strong bond with Mr Epstein, along with the recently revealed 2011 email exchange in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further bolsters our belief that you may have important details about the wrongdoings committed by Mr Epstein and his co-conspirators.”
A statement regarding the letter said it was co-signed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and requests a reply 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 panel. The citizens should be able to know who was abusing women and minors alongside Epstein.”
However, the lawmaker does not have the authority to subpoena the ex-royal and Congress itself cannot force testimony from a foreign national.
In 2020, US agencies said that Mountbatten Windsor neglected to cooperate 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 follow up on his public commitment that he was “willing to help any appropriate law enforcement agency”.
“It’s just for people to know whether Prince Andrew has fulfilled with that public commitment,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “offered no cooperation”.
Demands for Justice
The congressman said in a statement that “affluent and influential men have avoided accountability for far too long. Now, ex- Prince Andrew has the opportunity to tell the truth and provide redress for the victims. The committee will not cease pushing for accountability and transparency for those affected of Epstein and his group of co-conspirators.”
Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after listening to accounts to the committee from Epstein’s victims, as well as public reporting of released files, “it is vital that Andrew assists with the current investigation. If he is innocent, then he can prove his innocence.”
The lawmaker stated further: “And if not, our examination will demonstrate that, and the affected individuals will receive much-delayed redress. The royal household’s actions removing Andrew of his titles indicate there is further to this case.”
The letter was sent on the same day the British king formally removed Mountbatten Windsor of his princely title. Charles III officially made the adjustment – which had been announced a week ago – by issuing a “official document” which the crown office published in the Gazette, the UK’s government journal.
