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A American legislative panel probing sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein has formally written to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he undergo questioning as part of its probe into Epstein’s illegal activities.

In a communication published on Thursday, a California congressman, the leading Democrat on the House oversight panel, urged that King Charles III’s younger brother cooperate with its inquiry.

The official demand to provide testimony comes a week after Mountbatten Windsor was relieved of his royal title and opted to give up his rented residence in Windsor.

Files and Claims

Mountbatten Windsor’s name is listed in papers and travel logs obtained from Epstein’s estate and made public by the committee. He has also been charged by one of Epstein’s survivors, the late Virginia Giuffre, of sexual assault.

“The panel will probe allegations of abuse by Mountbatten Windsor, and will demand data on Epstein’s activities, circle, and accomplices based on the men’s long-term and well-documented friendship,” the committee said in a statement.

It demanded information from Mountbatten Windsor on specifics of his association with Epstein, who killed himself in a New York prison cell in 2019. Andrew has repeatedly categorically denied any wrongdoing.

Content of the Letter

“It has been documented that your association with Mr Epstein started in 1999 and that you remained close through and after his 2008 sentencing for trafficking underage girls for sex work,” the letter said.

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

A statement regarding the letter said it was endorsed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and asks a reply by 20 November.

Past Comments and Assistance

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

However, the congressman does not have the authority to compel the duke and Congress itself cannot oblige testimony from a non-US citizen.

In 2020, US authorities said that Mountbatten Windsor failed to reply to US requests for an meeting. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that prosecutors and the FBI had contacted Andrew’s legal team to follow up on his public commitment that he was “willing to help any suitable law enforcement agency”.

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

Calls for Accountability

The representative said in a statement that “affluent and powerful men have evaded justice for far too long. Now, one-time Prince Andrew has the option to be honest and deliver justice for the victims. We will not stop pushing for answerability and clarity for those affected of Epstein and his network of accomplices.”

Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after listening to accounts to the committee from Epstein’s survivors, as well as public reporting of disclosed papers, “it is essential that Andrew assists with the current probe. If he is innocent, then he can clear his name.”

The lawmaker added: “And if not, our investigation will show that, and the affected individuals will receive belated justice. The Royal Family’s actions stripping Andrew of his titles indicate there is further 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 “official document” which the monarch’s office released in the Gazette, the UK’s official public record.