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A American legislative panel looking into pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein has reached out to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, once Britain’s Prince Andrew, asking that he undergo a deposition as part of its investigation into Epstein’s wrongdoings.

In a communication made public on Thursday, a lawmaker, the leading Democrat on the House oversight committee, requested that King Charles III’s sibling help with its investigation.

The formal request to respond to queries comes a week after Mountbatten Windsor was relieved of his princely title and opted to give up his rented residence in Windsor.

Documents and Allegations

Mountbatten Windsor’s name appears in papers and flight logs subpoenaed from Epstein’s estate and publicly released by the committee. He has also been accused by one of Epstein’s survivors, the late Virginia Giuffre, of misconduct.

“The panel will examine claims of misconduct by Mountbatten Windsor, and will request information on Epstein’s network, circle, and connections based on the men’s enduring and thoroughly recorded friendship,” the committee said in a announcement.

It sought particulars from Mountbatten Windsor on specifics of his relationship with Epstein, who took his own life in a New York detention facility in 2019. Andrew has consistently categorically denied any impropriety.

Content of the Letter

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

It stated further: “It has also been alleged 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 harming minors. This strong bond with Mr Epstein, along with the recently revealed 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 offenses committed by Mr Epstein and his accomplices.”

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 Assistance

The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee stated: “Andrew should be summoned to testify before the committee. The citizens deserves to know who was abusing women and underage individuals alongside Epstein.”

However, the representative does not have the authority to subpoena the duke and Congress itself cannot compel evidence from a foreign national.

In 2020, US agencies said that Mountbatten Windsor failed to respond to US appeals for an interview. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that prosecutors and the FBI had reached out to Andrew’s lawyers to inquire on his previous pledge that he was “willing to help any appropriate law enforcement agency”.

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

Calls for Transparency

The representative said in a comment that “affluent and influential men have escaped the law for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the option to be honest and deliver redress for the victims. The committee will not stop advocating for responsibility and openness for those affected of Epstein and his network of accomplices.”

Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after hearing evidence to the committee from Epstein’s accusers, as well as news accounts of leaked documents, “it is crucial that Andrew works together with the current investigation. If he is blameless, then he can prove his innocence.”

The lawmaker stated further: “And if not, our probe will show that, and the survivors will receive much-delayed redress. The monarchy’s actions taking away Andrew of his honors suggest there is more to this situation.”

The letter came on the same day the British king officially revoked Mountbatten Windsor of his royal title. Charles III publicly made the adjustment – which had been revealed a week ago – by issuing a “royal decree” which the monarch’s office made public in the Gazette, the UK’s public registry.