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A American legislative panel probing sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein has sent a letter to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he submit to questioning as part of its investigation into Epstein’s illegal activities.

In a document released on Thursday, a lawmaker, the top Democrat on the House oversight committee, requested that King Charles III’s younger brother cooperate with its inquiry.

The written appeal to answer questions follows a week after Mountbatten Windsor was stripped of his princely title and opted to vacate his property in Windsor.

Documents and Claims

Mountbatten Windsor’s name is listed in records and aviation records subpoenaed from Epstein’s estate and made public by the committee. He has also been charged by one of Epstein’s survivors, the late Virginia Giuffre, of misconduct.

“The panel will probe allegations of misconduct by Mountbatten Windsor, and will seek details on Epstein’s network, network, and accomplices based on the men’s longstanding and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a press release.

It requested details from Mountbatten Windsor on specifics of his friendship with Epstein, who took his own life in a New York detention facility in 2019. Andrew has always strongly denied any wrongdoing.

Substance of the Request

“It has been documented that your association with Mr Epstein started in 1999 and that you stayed connected through and after his 2008 sentencing for trafficking underage girls for prostitution,” 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 secluded island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been charged of harming young girls. This intimate friendship with Mr Epstein, along with the freshly uncovered 2011 electronic correspondence in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further confirms our suspicion that you may have valuable information about the wrongdoings 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 requests a response by 20 November.

Previous Statements and Assistance

The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee told: “Andrew should be summoned to appear before the committee. The people should be able to know who was assaulting women and young girls alongside Epstein.”

However, the lawmaker does not possess the authority to compel the ex-royal and Congress itself cannot force statements from a non-US citizen.

In 2020, US officials said that Mountbatten Windsor failed to cooperate to US demands for an interview. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that lawyers and the FBI had contacted Andrew’s attorneys to inquire on his previous pledge that he was “prepared 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”.

Calls for Accountability

The congressman said in a statement that “wealthy and powerful men have evaded the law for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the option to come clean and secure accountability for the survivors. Oversight Democrats will not stop fighting for accountability and transparency for survivors of Epstein and his group of accomplices.”

Another supporter, a Virginia Democrat, said that after listening to accounts to the committee from Epstein’s victims, as well as news accounts of leaked documents, “it is vital that Andrew cooperates with the ongoing investigation. If he is blameless, then he can prove his innocence.”

The lawmaker stated further: “And if not, our examination will reveal that, and the survivors will receive much-delayed accountability. The Royal Family’s actions taking away Andrew of his honors suggest there is additional to this case.”

The letter came on the same day the British king officially stripped Mountbatten Windsor of his HRH style. Charles III formally made the adjustment – which had been announced a week ago – by issuing a “official document” which the royal office published in the Gazette, the UK’s official public record.