House Committee Asks for Questioning with Andrew in Jeffrey Epstein Investigation
A American legislative committee investigating pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein has sent a letter to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, once Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he undergo a deposition as part of its investigation into Epstein’s criminal operations.
In a document released on Thursday, a US representative, the senior Democrat on the House oversight committee, requested that King Charles III’s younger brother cooperate with its investigation.
The official demand to respond to queries arrives a week after Mountbatten Windsor was stripped of his princely title and consented to vacate his rented residence in Windsor.
Records and Accusations
Mountbatten Windsor’s name features in records and flight logs subpoenaed from Epstein’s estate and publicly released by the committee. He has also been charged by one of Epstein’s victims, the late Virginia Giuffre, of misconduct.
“The panel will probe allegations of misconduct by Mountbatten Windsor, and will demand information on Epstein’s operations, circle, and accomplices based on the men’s longstanding and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a announcement.
It sought particulars from Mountbatten Windsor on details of his relationship with Epstein, who killed himself in a New York detention facility in 2019. Andrew has always categorically denied any wrongdoing.
Details of the Communication
“It has been documented that your friendship with Mr Epstein began in 1999 and that you remained close through and after his 2008 conviction for soliciting minors for commercial sex acts,” the letter said.
It continued: “It has also been alleged that you traveled with Epstein to his New York residence, the Queen’s home at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s secluded island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been charged of assaulting young girls. This strong bond with Mr Epstein, coupled with the recently revealed 2011 digital communication in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further supports our belief that you may have important details about the crimes committed by Mr Epstein and his accomplices.”
A notification regarding the letter said it was endorsed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and requests a reply by 20 November.
Earlier Statements and Assistance
The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee commented: “Andrew should be summoned to testify before the committee. The citizens deserves to know who was harming women and young girls alongside Epstein.”
However, the lawmaker does not hold the power to compel the duke and Congress itself cannot force testimony from a overseas individual.
In 2020, US officials said that Mountbatten Windsor neglected to respond to US requests for an discussion. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that authorities and the FBI had approached Andrew’s lawyers to inquire on his earlier promise that he was “ready to help any suitable law enforcement agency”.
“It’s just for people to know whether Prince Andrew has honored with that assurance,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “provided zero cooperation”.
Appeals for Accountability
The representative said in a announcement that “wealthy and powerful men have escaped justice for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the chance to tell the truth and secure redress for the affected individuals. The committee will not halt fighting for responsibility and clarity for victims of Epstein and his network of accomplices.”
Another supporter, a Virginia Democrat, said that after hearing accounts to the committee from Epstein’s accusers, as well as news accounts of disclosed papers, “it is crucial that Andrew works together with the active inquiry. If he is innocent, then he can clear his name.”
The lawmaker continued: “And if not, our examination will show that, and the survivors will receive long overdue redress. The monarchy’s actions stripping Andrew of his styles show there is additional to this case.”
The letter came on the same day the British king formally revoked Mountbatten Windsor of his royal title. Charles III formally made the change – which had been declared a week ago – by issuing a “official document” which the monarch’s office released in the Gazette, the UK’s government journal.
