Congressional Committee Seeks Deposition with Prince Andrew in Jeffrey Epstein Inquiry
A US congressional panel looking into sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein has sent a letter to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, once Britain’s Prince Andrew, asking that he submit to questioning as part of its probe into Epstein’s criminal operations.
In a document made public on Thursday, a US representative, the top Democrat on the House oversight committee, asked that King Charles III’s younger brother help with its inquiry.
The formal request to provide testimony comes a week after Mountbatten Windsor was stripped of his royal title and agreed to give up his property in Windsor.
Documents and Allegations
Mountbatten Windsor’s name is listed in records and aviation records obtained from Epstein’s estate and made public by the committee. He has also been alleged by one of Epstein’s victims, the late Virginia Giuffre, of sexual assault.
“The committee will investigate accusations of misconduct by Mountbatten Windsor, and will seek data on Epstein’s activities, circle, and accomplices based on the men’s longstanding and thoroughly recorded friendship,” the committee said in a announcement.
It sought details from Mountbatten Windsor on particulars of his friendship with Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York jail cell in 2019. Andrew has repeatedly vehemently rejected any misconduct.
Details of the Request
“It has been publicly reported that your association with Mr Epstein started in 1999 and that you remained close through and after his 2008 guilty verdict for procuring minors for sex work,” the letter said.
It added: “It has also been claimed that you journeyed with Epstein to his New York property, the Queen’s residence at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s personal island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been alleged of abusing underage individuals. This close relationship with Mr Epstein, coupled with the recently revealed 2011 email exchange in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further supports our concern that you may have valuable information about the crimes committed by Mr Epstein and his accomplices.”
A notification regarding the letter said it was co-signed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and asks a reply by 20 November.
Past Comments and Assistance
The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee told: “Andrew should be called to appear before the panel. The citizens deserves to know who was assaulting women and young girls alongside Epstein.”
However, the lawmaker does not possess the authority to compel the former prince and Congress itself cannot compel testimony from a foreign national.
In 2020, US authorities said that Mountbatten Windsor failed to respond to US appeals for an discussion. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that lawyers and the FBI had approached Andrew’s legal team to follow up on his public commitment that he was “ready to help any appropriate law enforcement agency”.
“It’s fair for people to know whether Prince Andrew has honored with that pledge,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “provided absolutely no cooperation”.
Demands for Accountability
The representative said in a comment that “affluent and powerful men have escaped the law for far too long. Now, ex- Prince Andrew has the opportunity to be honest and secure justice for the survivors. Oversight Democrats will not stop fighting for answerability and openness for victims of Epstein and his gang of co-conspirators.”
Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after listening to evidence to the committee from Epstein’s victims, as well as public reporting of released files, “it is essential that Andrew works together with the ongoing inquiry. If he is not guilty, then he can vindicate himself.”
The lawmaker added: “And if not, our investigation will demonstrate that, and the victims will receive belated redress. The monarchy’s actions stripping Andrew of his styles indicate there is further to this situation.”
The letter was issued on the same day the British king formally stripped Mountbatten Windsor of his royal title. Charles III publicly made the adjustment – which had been announced a week ago – by issuing a “official document” which the royal office released in the Gazette, the UK’s official public record.