🔗 Share this article House Committee Requests Deposition with Andrew in Epstein Probe A US congressional committee investigating sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein has reached out to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, requesting that he submit to questioning as part of its investigation into Epstein’s criminal operations. In a letter released on Thursday, a California congressman, the senior Democrat on the House oversight committee, urged that King Charles III’s sibling help with its probe. The formal request to provide testimony arrives a week after Mountbatten Windsor was stripped of his royal title and agreed to give up his property in Windsor. Records and Claims Mountbatten Windsor’s name is listed in documents and flight logs secured from Epstein’s estate and publicly released by the committee. He has also been charged by one of Epstein’s accusers, the late Virginia Giuffre, of abuse. “The oversight committee will examine claims of abuse by Mountbatten Windsor, and will request data on Epstein’s operations, circle, and connections based on the men’s enduring and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a press release. It demanded information from Mountbatten Windsor on specifics of his relationship with Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York jail cell in 2019. Andrew has repeatedly strongly denied any misconduct. Content of the Communication “It has been documented that your association with Mr Epstein commenced in 1999 and that you remained close through and after his 2008 conviction for procuring minors for prostitution,” the letter said. It continued: “It has also been reported that you went with Epstein to his New York home, the Queen’s residence at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s private island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been accused of harming young girls. This strong bond with Mr Epstein, coupled with the freshly uncovered 2011 email exchange in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further supports our concern that you may have important details about the offenses committed by Mr Epstein and his partners in crime.” A announcement regarding the letter said it was endorsed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and requests a reply by 20 November. Previous Remarks and Collaboration The letter comes a week after another Democrat on the committee stated: “Andrew should be summoned to appear before the oversight committee. The public has the right to know who was abusing women and young girls alongside Epstein.” However, the representative does not hold the power to subpoena the duke and Congress itself cannot compel evidence 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 authorities and the FBI had approached Andrew’s legal team to follow up on his public commitment that he was “ready to help any suitable law enforcement agency”. “It’s just 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”. Calls for Justice The representative said in a statement that “rich and influential men have avoided accountability for far too long. Now, one-time Prince Andrew has the option to tell the truth and deliver redress for the affected individuals. We will not halt fighting for responsibility and clarity for those affected of Epstein and his gang of accomplices.” Another signatory, a Virginia Democrat, said that after listening to testimony to the committee from Epstein’s survivors, as well as news accounts of disclosed papers, “it is essential that Andrew cooperates with the current inquiry. If he is not guilty, then he can prove his innocence.” The lawmaker continued: “And if not, our probe will demonstrate that, and the victims will receive belated accountability. The Royal Family’s actions stripping Andrew of his titles indicate there is additional to this story.” The letter was sent on the same day the British king formally removed Mountbatten Windsor of his royal title. Charles III formally made the change – which had been declared a week ago – by issuing a “letters patent” which the crown office published in the Gazette, the UK’s government journal.