Congressional Committee Asks for Questioning with the Duke of York in Jeffrey Epstein Investigation
A US congressional committee probing convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has sent a letter to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, previously Britain’s Prince Andrew, requesting that he submit to questioning as part of its investigation into Epstein’s wrongdoings.
In a letter published on Thursday, a US representative, the top Democrat on the House investigative committee, asked that King Charles III’s brother cooperate with its probe.
The written appeal to answer questions comes a week after Mountbatten Windsor was stripped of his princely title and consented to vacate his property in Windsor.
Records and Allegations
Mountbatten Windsor’s name features in documents and aviation records secured from Epstein’s estate and disclosed 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 wrongdoing by Mountbatten Windsor, and will request details on Epstein’s activities, network, and connections based on the men’s long-term and thoroughly recorded friendship,” the committee said in a statement.
It sought details from Mountbatten Windsor on details of his association with Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York prison cell in 2019. Andrew has consistently strongly denied any impropriety.
Content of the Request
“It has been publicly reported that your relationship with Mr Epstein commenced in 1999 and that you stayed connected through and after his 2008 guilty verdict for trafficking underage girls for sex work,” the letter said.
It stated further: “It has also been reported that you journeyed with Epstein to his New York property, the Queen’s residence at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s private island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been accused of abusing young girls. This strong bond with Mr Epstein, along with the freshly uncovered 2011 digital communication in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further confirms our belief that you may have key insights 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 demands a reply by 20 November.
Previous Remarks and Assistance
The letter arrives a week after another Democrat on the committee stated: “Andrew should be asked to give evidence before the panel. The public deserves to know who was harming women and minors alongside Epstein.”
However, the congressman does not hold the power to compel the ex-royal and Congress itself cannot compel evidence from a overseas individual.
In 2020, US officials said that Mountbatten Windsor failed to respond to US demands for an discussion. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that lawyers and the FBI had approached Andrew’s attorneys to follow up on his earlier promise that he was “prepared to help any relevant 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 “provided no cooperation”.
Demands for Justice
The lawmaker said in a statement that “affluent and influential men have escaped accountability for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the option to be honest and provide justice for the victims. Oversight Democrats will not cease fighting for responsibility and openness for survivors of Epstein and his network of co-conspirators.”
Another supporter, a Virginia Democrat, said that after receiving testimony to the committee from Epstein’s victims, as well as news accounts of released files, “it is essential that Andrew cooperates with the current inquiry. If he is blameless, then he can clear his name.”
The lawmaker continued: “And if not, our probe will show that, and the victims will receive long overdue justice. The Royal Family’s actions taking away Andrew of his honors indicate there is further to this case.”
The letter came on the same day the British king formally removed Mountbatten Windsor of his HRH style. Charles III publicly made the change – which had been announced a week ago – by issuing a “letters patent” which the crown office made public in the Gazette, the UK’s public registry.
