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A US congressional panel investigating sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein has sent a letter to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, previously Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he undergo a deposition as part of its probe into Epstein’s criminal operations.

In a communication released on Thursday, a California congressman, the senior Democrat on the House investigative committee, urged that King Charles III’s sibling assist with its probe.

The formal request to respond to queries arrives a week after Mountbatten Windsor was relieved of his princely title and agreed to vacate his rented residence in Windsor.

Files and Claims

Mountbatten Windsor’s name features in papers and travel logs obtained from Epstein’s estate and publicly released by the committee. He has also been charged by one of Epstein’s survivors, the late Virginia Giuffre, of abuse.

“The oversight committee will probe accusations of wrongdoing by Mountbatten Windsor, and will request data on Epstein’s network, circle, and associates based on the men’s long-term and well-documented friendship,” the committee said in a press release.

It sought particulars from Mountbatten Windsor on particulars of his relationship with Epstein, who killed himself in a New York detention facility in 2019. Andrew has always categorically denied any misconduct.

Content of the Letter

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

It continued: “It has also been claimed that you journeyed with Epstein to his New York residence, the Queen’s residence at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s secluded island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been accused of harming minors. This intimate friendship with Mr Epstein, coupled with the recently revealed 2011 digital communication in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further confirms our belief that you may have key insights about the wrongdoings committed by Mr Epstein and his co-conspirators.”

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

Previous Comments and Cooperation

The letter comes a week after another Democrat on the committee commented: “Andrew should be summoned to testify before the oversight committee. The citizens should be able to know who was assaulting women and young girls alongside Epstein.”

However, the congressman does not hold the power to subpoena the duke and Congress itself cannot force testimony from a overseas individual.

In 2020, US agencies said that Mountbatten Windsor did not respond to US requests for an meeting. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that authorities and the FBI had approached Andrew’s legal team to inquire on his previous pledge that he was “willing 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 “offered zero cooperation”.

Calls for Justice

The lawmaker said in a statement that “affluent and powerful men have evaded the law for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the chance to be honest and provide justice for the affected individuals. We will not halt fighting for answerability and openness for survivors of Epstein and his network of accomplices.”

Another signatory, a Virginia Democrat, said that after receiving accounts to the committee from Epstein’s victims, as well as media coverage of disclosed papers, “it is essential that Andrew works together with the current inquiry. If he is not guilty, then he can prove his innocence.”

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

The letter was issued on the same day the British king officially revoked Mountbatten Windsor of his princely title. Charles III formally made the adjustment – which had been declared a week ago – by issuing a “letters patent” which the crown office released in the Gazette, the UK’s public registry.