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A American legislative committee looking into pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein has formally written to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, once Britain’s Prince Andrew, asking that he participate in an interview as part of its probe into Epstein’s criminal operations.

In a communication published on Thursday, a US representative, the senior Democrat on the House oversight panel, asked that King Charles III’s sibling help with its inquiry.

The official demand to answer questions follows a week after Mountbatten Windsor was relieved of his royal title and agreed to vacate his property in Windsor.

Documents and Allegations

Mountbatten Windsor’s name appears in documents and flight logs secured from Epstein’s estate and disclosed by the committee. He has also been accused by one of Epstein’s survivors, the late Virginia Giuffre, of abuse.

“The panel will probe claims of wrongdoing by Mountbatten Windsor, and will demand details on Epstein’s operations, circle, and connections based on the men’s long-term and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a statement.

It requested details from Mountbatten Windsor on particulars of his relationship with Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York jail cell in 2019. Andrew has always strongly denied any misconduct.

Substance of the Communication

“It has been documented that your association with Mr Epstein started in 1999 and that you remained close through and after his 2008 sentencing for trafficking underage girls for commercial sex acts,” the letter said.

It stated further: “It has also been reported that you traveled with Epstein to his New York residence, the Queen’s estate at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s private island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been accused of abusing minors. This strong bond with Mr Epstein, coupled with the newly disclosed 2011 digital communication in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further confirms our belief that you may have valuable information about the wrongdoings committed by Mr Epstein and his co-conspirators.”

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

Previous Remarks and Cooperation

The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee commented: “Andrew should be called to appear before the panel. The citizens should be able to know who was assaulting women and young girls alongside Epstein.”

However, the representative does not have the ability to subpoena the former prince and Congress itself cannot force testimony from a foreign national.

In 2020, US agencies said that Mountbatten Windsor neglected to cooperate to US requests 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 follow up on his previous pledge that he was “willing to help any appropriate law enforcement agency”.

“It’s just 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”.

Calls for Accountability

The lawmaker said in a comment that “rich and well-connected men have avoided the law for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the opportunity to be honest and deliver redress for the affected individuals. Oversight Democrats will not halt pushing for accountability and openness for those affected of Epstein and his network of accomplices.”

Another supporter, a Virginia Democrat, said that after receiving evidence to the committee from Epstein’s accusers, as well as news accounts of leaked documents, “it is vital that Andrew assists with the ongoing inquiry. If he is blameless, then he can vindicate himself.”

The lawmaker stated further: “And if not, our examination will show that, and the survivors will receive long overdue redress. The monarchy’s actions stripping Andrew of his honors indicate there is more to this story.”

The letter was sent on the same day the British king formally revoked Mountbatten Windsor of his princely title. Charles III officially made the adjustment – which had been declared a week ago – by issuing a “official document” which the crown office published in the Gazette, the UK’s government journal.