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A US congressional committee investigating convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has sent a letter to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, once Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he submit to an interview as part of its probe into Epstein’s wrongdoings.

In a letter released on Thursday, a US representative, the senior Democrat on the House oversight panel, urged that King Charles III’s brother assist with its investigation.

The formal request to respond to queries arrives a week after Mountbatten Windsor was lost his royal title and agreed to give up his leased home in Windsor.

Documents and Allegations

Mountbatten Windsor’s name features 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 victims, the late Virginia Giuffre, of sexual assault.

“The panel will examine claims of wrongdoing by Mountbatten Windsor, and will seek details on Epstein’s network, network, and connections based on the men’s longstanding and thoroughly recorded friendship,” the committee said in a announcement.

It demanded information from Mountbatten Windsor on particulars of his relationship with Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York detention facility in 2019. Andrew has consistently strongly denied any misconduct.

Substance of the Request

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

It added: “It has also been alleged that you went with Epstein to his New York property, the Queen’s estate at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s secluded island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been accused of assaulting underage individuals. This strong bond with Mr Epstein, coupled with the freshly uncovered 2011 digital communication in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further supports our suspicion that you may have valuable information about the offenses committed by Mr Epstein and his accomplices.”

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

Earlier Statements and Collaboration

The letter comes a week after another Democrat on the committee told: “Andrew should be called to give evidence before the committee. The citizens should be able to know who was abusing women and minors alongside Epstein.”

However, the representative does not possess the ability to subpoena the duke and Congress itself cannot compel statements from a non-US citizen.

In 2020, US officials 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 approached Andrew’s attorneys to check on his previous pledge that he was “ready to help any appropriate law enforcement agency”.

“It’s reasonable for people to know whether Prince Andrew has fulfilled with that assurance,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “offered no cooperation”.

Demands for Accountability

The lawmaker said in a comment that “wealthy and influential men have avoided the law for far too long. Now, ex- Prince Andrew has the chance to come clean and provide justice for the affected individuals. Oversight Democrats will not halt pushing for accountability and transparency for victims of Epstein and his network of accomplices.”

Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after receiving evidence to the committee from Epstein’s accusers, as well as public reporting of disclosed papers, “it is crucial that Andrew assists with the current investigation. If he is not guilty, then he can clear his name.”

The lawmaker continued: “And if not, our probe will demonstrate that, and the affected individuals will receive belated accountability. The royal household’s actions stripping Andrew of his styles suggest there is more to this story.”

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