Congressional Panel Requests Deposition with Andrew in Epstein Investigation

A US congressional body investigating convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has formally written to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, once Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he participate in a deposition as part of its investigation into Epstein’s criminal operations.

In a document made public on Thursday, a lawmaker, the senior Democrat on the House oversight panel, urged that King Charles III’s sibling help with its investigation.

The formal request to answer questions arrives a week after Mountbatten Windsor was stripped of his HRH style and opted to surrender his leased home in Windsor.

Records and Accusations

Mountbatten Windsor’s name appears in documents and aviation records subpoenaed from Epstein’s estate and disclosed by the committee. He has also been alleged by one of Epstein’s victims, the late Virginia Giuffre, of abuse.

“The panel will probe claims of wrongdoing by Mountbatten Windsor, and will seek information on Epstein’s network, associates, and associates based on the men’s long-term and well-documented friendship,” the committee said in a announcement.

It demanded details from Mountbatten Windsor on particulars of his association with Epstein, who took his own life in a New York detention facility in 2019. Andrew has repeatedly categorically denied any wrongdoing.

Details of the Request

“It has been documented that your association with Mr Epstein started in 1999 and that you continued associating through and after his 2008 sentencing for trafficking underage girls for prostitution,” the letter said.

It continued: “It has also been reported 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 accused of assaulting young girls. This intimate friendship with Mr Epstein, combined with the recently revealed 2011 electronic correspondence in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further bolsters our belief that you may have key insights about the crimes committed by Mr Epstein and his partners in crime.”

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

Previous Comments and Cooperation

The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee stated: “Andrew should be asked to testify before the oversight committee. The people deserves to know who was assaulting women and underage individuals alongside Epstein.”

However, the congressman does not have the power to legally require the former prince and Congress itself cannot compel evidence from a non-US citizen.

In 2020, US agencies said that Mountbatten Windsor did not cooperate to US demands for an interview. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that prosecutors and the FBI had approached Andrew’s attorneys to follow up on his previous pledge that he was “prepared to help any appropriate law enforcement agency”.

“It’s fair for people to know whether Prince Andrew has fulfilled with that public commitment,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “provided no cooperation”.

Calls for Transparency

The lawmaker said in a statement that “affluent and powerful men have avoided the law for far too long. Now, one-time Prince Andrew has the chance to be honest and provide accountability for the affected individuals. Oversight Democrats will not stop pushing for accountability and openness for victims of Epstein and his network of partners.”

Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after listening to evidence to the committee from Epstein’s victims, as well as media coverage of released files, “it is essential that Andrew assists with the active probe. If he is blameless, then he can clear his name.”

The lawmaker added: “And if not, our investigation will show that, and the victims will receive long overdue accountability. The Royal Family’s actions removing Andrew of his honors indicate there is more to this case.”

The letter was sent on the same day the British king publicly stripped Mountbatten Windsor of his royal title. Charles III publicly made the adjustment – which had been declared a week ago – by issuing a “royal decree” which the royal office published in the Gazette, the UK’s government journal.