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A US congressional panel looking into pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein has sent a letter to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, requesting that he submit to an interview as part of its investigation into Epstein’s wrongdoings.

In a document made public on Thursday, a California congressman, the top Democrat on the House oversight committee, requested that King Charles III’s brother cooperate with its probe.

The written appeal to respond to queries comes a week after Mountbatten Windsor was stripped of his royal title and agreed to surrender his rented residence in Windsor.

Documents and Claims

Mountbatten Windsor’s name appears in documents and aviation records obtained from Epstein’s estate and disclosed by the committee. He has also been alleged by one of Epstein’s victims, the late Virginia Giuffre, of abuse.

“The oversight committee will investigate accusations of abuse by Mountbatten Windsor, and will seek information on Epstein’s network, associates, and associates based on the men’s enduring and thoroughly recorded friendship,” the committee said in a announcement.

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

Substance of the Communication

“It has been publicly reported that your relationship with Mr Epstein began in 1999 and that you stayed connected through and after his 2008 conviction for procuring minors for sex work,” the letter said.

It stated further: “It has also been alleged that you went with Epstein to his New York home, the Queen’s estate at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s private island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been alleged of assaulting underage individuals. This intimate friendship with Mr Epstein, coupled with the recently revealed 2011 email exchange in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further confirms our belief 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 endorsed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and asks a response by 20 November.

Previous Statements and Assistance

The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee commented: “Andrew should be asked to appear before the oversight committee. The citizens deserves to know who was harming women and minors alongside Epstein.”

However, the congressman does not possess the authority to compel the duke and Congress itself cannot force statements from a non-US citizen.

In 2020, US officials said that Mountbatten Windsor failed to respond to US demands for an discussion. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that prosecutors and the FBI had contacted Andrew’s attorneys to check on his earlier promise 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 public commitment,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “provided absolutely no cooperation”.

Demands for Transparency

The lawmaker said in a announcement that “wealthy and powerful men have evaded accountability for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the option to come clean and secure accountability for the victims. Oversight Democrats will not halt pushing for accountability and clarity for those affected of Epstein and his network of accomplices.”

Another supporter, a Virginia Democrat, said that after listening to evidence to the committee from Epstein’s survivors, as well as news accounts of leaked documents, “it is essential that Andrew cooperates with the active investigation. If he is blameless, then he can prove his innocence.”

The lawmaker stated further: “And if not, our probe will demonstrate that, and the affected individuals will receive much-delayed redress. The monarchy’s actions stripping Andrew of his honors indicate there is additional to this situation.”

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