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A US congressional body probing sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein has sent a letter to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, once Britain’s Prince Andrew, asking that he undergo an interview as part of its probe into Epstein’s criminal operations.

In a communication released on Thursday, a lawmaker, the top Democrat on the House investigative committee, asked that King Charles III’s younger brother assist with its inquiry.

The formal request to respond to queries arrives a week after Mountbatten Windsor was lost his princely title and consented to vacate his property in Windsor.

Records and Claims

Mountbatten Windsor’s name is listed in documents and flight logs obtained 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 abuse.

“The committee will investigate claims of wrongdoing by Mountbatten Windsor, and will demand information on Epstein’s operations, associates, and accomplices based on the men’s enduring and thoroughly recorded friendship,” the committee said in a announcement.

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

Content of the Letter

“It has been publicly reported that your association with Mr Epstein commenced in 1999 and that you remained close through and after his 2008 guilty verdict for procuring minors for commercial sex acts,” the letter said.

It continued: “It has also been alleged that you went with Epstein to his New York residence, the Queen’s home at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s personal island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been charged of abusing young girls. This strong bond with Mr Epstein, coupled with the recently revealed 2011 digital communication in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further supports our concern that you may have key insights about the offenses committed by Mr Epstein and his co-conspirators.”

A statement regarding the letter said it was co-signed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and demands a reply by 20 November.

Earlier Remarks 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 citizens should be able to know who was abusing women and young girls alongside Epstein.”

However, the congressman does not hold the ability to legally require the ex-royal and Congress itself cannot compel testimony from a non-US citizen.

In 2020, US authorities said that Mountbatten Windsor did not respond to US appeals for an meeting. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that authorities and the FBI had approached Andrew’s lawyers to check on his public commitment that he was “prepared to help any appropriate law enforcement agency”.

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

Appeals for Accountability

The lawmaker said in a statement that “rich and influential men have escaped accountability for far too long. Now, one-time Prince Andrew has the opportunity to be honest and provide accountability for the survivors. Oversight Democrats will not stop fighting for accountability and transparency 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 victims, as well as news accounts of disclosed papers, “it is crucial that Andrew works together with the current probe. If he is blameless, then he can prove his innocence.”

The lawmaker added: “And if not, our probe will demonstrate that, and the survivors will receive belated accountability. The monarchy’s actions stripping Andrew of his honors suggest there is more to this situation.”

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