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A American legislative committee investigating convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has formally written to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, once Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he submit to questioning as part of its probe into Epstein’s illegal activities.

In a document published on Thursday, a lawmaker, the top Democrat on the House oversight committee, urged that King Charles III’s brother cooperate with its investigation.

The written appeal to respond to queries arrives a week after Mountbatten Windsor was lost his royal title and agreed to vacate his leased home in Windsor.

Records and Allegations

Mountbatten Windsor’s name features in records and flight logs secured from Epstein’s estate and disclosed by the committee. He has also been charged by one of Epstein’s victims, the late Virginia Giuffre, of sexual assault.

“The committee will investigate allegations of wrongdoing by Mountbatten Windsor, and will demand information on Epstein’s activities, circle, and accomplices based on the men’s longstanding and thoroughly recorded friendship,” the committee said in a announcement.

It demanded details from Mountbatten Windsor on details of his association with Epstein, who took his own life in a New York prison cell in 2019. Andrew has always vehemently rejected any misconduct.

Details of the Letter

“It has been publicly reported that your association with Mr Epstein started in 1999 and that you continued associating through and after his 2008 conviction for procuring minors for commercial sex acts,” the letter said.

It stated further: “It has also been claimed that you went 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 alleged of assaulting young girls. This strong bond with Mr Epstein, combined with the recently revealed 2011 email exchange in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further bolsters our belief that you may have important details about the wrongdoings committed by Mr Epstein and his partners in crime.”

A notification regarding the letter said it was co-signed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and demands a reply by 20 November.

Past Comments and Cooperation

The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee commented: “Andrew should be asked to testify before the oversight committee. The people has the right to know who was harming women and minors alongside Epstein.”

However, the lawmaker does not hold the authority to compel the duke and Congress itself cannot compel testimony from a non-US citizen.

In 2020, US agencies said that Mountbatten Windsor neglected to reply 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 lawyers to check on his public commitment that he was “ready to help any suitable law enforcement agency”.

“It’s fair for people to know whether Prince Andrew has honored with that assurance,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “given zero cooperation”.

Demands for Transparency

The congressman said in a announcement that “affluent and powerful men have avoided justice for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the chance to tell the truth and deliver accountability for the affected individuals. The committee will not stop fighting for responsibility and clarity for survivors of Epstein and his group of accomplices.”

Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after receiving testimony to the committee from Epstein’s survivors, as well as media coverage of leaked documents, “it is essential that Andrew assists with the active inquiry. If he is blameless, then he can prove his innocence.”

The lawmaker continued: “And if not, our examination will show that, and the survivors will receive belated justice. The Royal Family’s actions stripping Andrew of his honors indicate there is more to this case.”

The letter was issued on the same day the British king officially stripped Mountbatten Windsor of his royal title. Charles III formally made the alteration – which had been declared a week ago – by issuing a “official document” which the crown office made public in the Gazette, the UK’s government journal.