House Panel Asks for Questioning with the Duke of York in Jeffrey Epstein Investigation
A American legislative body investigating pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein has formally written to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, once Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he submit to an interview as part of its investigation into Epstein’s criminal operations.
In a document made public on Thursday, a US representative, the senior Democrat on the House investigative 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 lost his princely title and opted to give up his property in Windsor.
Documents and Claims
Mountbatten Windsor’s name appears in records and aviation records obtained from Epstein’s estate and publicly released by the committee. He has also been accused by one of Epstein’s survivors, the late Virginia Giuffre, of misconduct.
“The oversight committee will probe accusations of wrongdoing by Mountbatten Windsor, and will seek information on Epstein’s operations, associates, and associates based on the men’s longstanding and well-documented friendship,” the committee said in a statement.
It requested information from Mountbatten Windsor on details of his friendship with Epstein, who killed himself in a New York prison cell in 2019. Andrew has repeatedly strongly denied any misconduct.
Content of the Letter
“It has been documented that your friendship with Mr Epstein began in 1999 and that you stayed connected through and after his 2008 guilty verdict for procuring minors for prostitution,” the letter said.
It stated further: “It has also been alleged 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 assaulting minors. This intimate friendship with Mr Epstein, combined with the recently revealed 2011 digital communication in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further supports our concern that you may have important details about the wrongdoings committed by Mr Epstein and his co-conspirators.”
A statement regarding the letter said it was supported by 13 other Democrats on the committee and demands a answer by 20 November.
Past Remarks and Cooperation
The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee commented: “Andrew should be asked to give evidence before the committee. The people deserves to know who was assaulting women and minors alongside Epstein.”
However, the lawmaker does not have the power to subpoena the former prince and Congress itself cannot force testimony from a overseas individual.
In 2020, US authorities said that Mountbatten Windsor neglected 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 reached out to Andrew’s attorneys 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 public commitment,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “provided zero cooperation”.
Appeals for Transparency
The lawmaker said in a comment that “affluent and well-connected men have escaped justice for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the option to tell the truth and secure justice for the victims. We will not cease advocating for responsibility and transparency for survivors of Epstein and his group of co-conspirators.”
Another signatory, a Virginia Democrat, said that after receiving testimony to the committee from Epstein’s survivors, as well as media coverage of released files, “it is essential that Andrew assists with the current inquiry. If he is innocent, then he can prove his innocence.”
The lawmaker stated further: “And if not, our examination will demonstrate that, and the affected individuals will receive much-delayed redress. The monarchy’s actions removing Andrew of his honors show there is more to this situation.”
The letter was sent on the same day the British king publicly removed Mountbatten Windsor of his royal title. Charles III officially made the change – which had been announced a week ago – by issuing a “letters patent” which the monarch’s office published in the Gazette, the UK’s government journal.