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A US congressional body probing pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein has reached out to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he submit to a deposition as part of its inquiry into Epstein’s criminal operations.

In a document made public on Thursday, a US representative, the top Democrat on the House oversight committee, urged that King Charles III’s younger brother assist with its inquiry.

The written appeal to answer questions comes a week after Mountbatten Windsor was relieved of his royal title and opted to surrender his property in Windsor.

Records and Allegations

Mountbatten Windsor’s name features in documents and travel logs subpoenaed from Epstein’s estate and made public by the committee. He has also been charged by one of Epstein’s victims, the late Virginia Giuffre, of abuse.

“The committee will probe accusations of misconduct by Mountbatten Windsor, and will seek information on Epstein’s activities, associates, and connections based on the men’s enduring and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a press release.

It demanded particulars from Mountbatten Windsor on particulars of his friendship with Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York jail cell in 2019. Andrew has consistently strongly denied any impropriety.

Details of the Request

“It has been documented 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 claimed that you traveled with Epstein to his New York home, the Queen’s residence at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s secluded island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been alleged of harming young girls. This intimate friendship with Mr Epstein, coupled with the recently revealed 2011 digital communication in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further bolsters our concern that you may have key insights about the offenses committed by Mr Epstein and his accomplices.”

A statement regarding the letter said it was supported by 13 other Democrats on the committee and requests a answer by 20 November.

Previous Comments and Collaboration

The letter comes a week after another Democrat on the committee told: “Andrew should be asked to appear before the oversight committee. The public has the right to know who was abusing women and underage individuals alongside Epstein.”

However, the representative does not hold the power to subpoena the former prince and Congress itself cannot force evidence from a foreign national.

In 2020, US authorities said that Mountbatten Windsor did not cooperate to US requests for an discussion. 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 relevant law enforcement agency”.

“It’s fair for people to know whether Prince Andrew has followed through with that pledge,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “offered zero cooperation”.

Demands for Justice

The lawmaker said in a announcement that “rich and influential men have escaped accountability for far too long. Now, one-time Prince Andrew has the chance to come clean and secure accountability for the victims. The committee will not halt fighting for responsibility and clarity for victims of Epstein and his group of partners.”

Another supporter, a Virginia Democrat, said that after hearing testimony to the committee from Epstein’s victims, as well as news accounts of disclosed papers, “it is crucial that Andrew cooperates with the current probe. If he is innocent, then he can vindicate himself.”

The lawmaker added: “And if not, our examination will reveal that, and the affected individuals will receive belated accountability. The monarchy’s actions taking away Andrew of his titles suggest there is additional to this story.”

The letter came on the same day the British king publicly stripped Mountbatten Windsor of his HRH style. Charles III officially made the change – which had been announced a week ago – by issuing a “royal decree” which the royal office published in the Gazette, the UK’s official public record.