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A American legislative panel looking into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has reached out to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he undergo an interview as part of its probe into Epstein’s illegal activities.

In a communication released on Thursday, a California congressman, the leading Democrat on the House investigative committee, asked that King Charles III’s younger brother assist with its investigation.

The written appeal to answer questions comes a week after Mountbatten Windsor was lost his HRH style and agreed to surrender his property in Windsor.

Documents and Allegations

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

“The oversight committee will investigate allegations of misconduct by Mountbatten Windsor, and will demand information on Epstein’s activities, network, and connections based on the men’s long-term and well-documented friendship,” the committee said in a press release.

It demanded particulars from Mountbatten Windsor on particulars of his association with Epstein, who killed himself in a New York jail cell in 2019. Andrew has always categorically denied any impropriety.

Substance of the Request

“It has been widely reported that your relationship with Mr Epstein began in 1999 and that you continued associating through and after his 2008 sentencing for soliciting minors for sex work,” the letter said.

It stated further: “It has also been claimed that you traveled with Epstein to his New York residence, the Queen’s home at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s secluded island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been alleged of assaulting young girls. This close relationship with Mr Epstein, combined with the recently revealed 2011 electronic correspondence in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further bolsters our suspicion that you may have valuable information about the offenses committed by Mr Epstein and his co-conspirators.”

A announcement regarding the letter said it was supported by 13 other Democrats on the committee and demands a reply by 20 November.

Earlier Statements and Cooperation

The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee commented: “Andrew should be called to give evidence before the committee. The public deserves to know who was abusing women and underage individuals alongside Epstein.”

However, the congressman does not hold the authority to compel the duke and Congress itself cannot force statements from a foreign national.

In 2020, US authorities 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 lawyers and the FBI had contacted Andrew’s attorneys to inquire on his earlier promise that he was “ready to help any appropriate law enforcement agency”.

“It’s just for people to know whether Prince Andrew has honored with that public commitment,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “given no cooperation”.

Demands for Accountability

The lawmaker said in a comment that “wealthy and well-connected men have escaped the law for far too long. Now, one-time Prince Andrew has the opportunity to be honest and deliver redress for the survivors. We will not halt advocating for accountability and transparency for victims of Epstein and his network of accomplices.”

Another signatory, a Virginia Democrat, said that after receiving accounts to the committee from Epstein’s survivors, as well as media coverage of released files, “it is essential that Andrew works together with the active probe. If he is not guilty, then he can vindicate himself.”

The lawmaker continued: “And if not, our probe will show that, and the victims will receive long overdue accountability. The royal household’s actions stripping Andrew of his styles indicate there is additional to this story.”

The letter came on the same day the British king officially stripped Mountbatten Windsor of his HRH style. Charles III formally made the alteration – which had been revealed a week ago – by issuing a “letters patent” which the royal office published in the Gazette, the UK’s government journal.