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A American legislative body probing sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein has reached out to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, requesting that he participate in an interview as part of its probe into Epstein’s criminal operations.

In a letter published on Thursday, a lawmaker, the senior Democrat on the House investigative committee, requested that King Charles III’s younger brother cooperate with its investigation.

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

Documents and Accusations

Mountbatten Windsor’s name features in records and travel logs secured from Epstein’s estate and publicly released by the committee. He has also been alleged by one of Epstein’s survivors, the late Virginia Giuffre, of misconduct.

“The oversight committee will examine claims of misconduct by Mountbatten Windsor, and will demand data 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 jail cell in 2019. Andrew has repeatedly strongly denied any impropriety.

Details of the Letter

“It has been widely reported that your relationship with Mr Epstein started in 1999 and that you remained close through and after his 2008 sentencing for procuring minors for commercial sex acts,” the letter said.

It added: “It has also been alleged that you journeyed 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 abusing young girls. This intimate friendship with Mr Epstein, combined with the newly disclosed 2011 digital communication in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further supports our belief that you may have valuable information about the crimes committed by Mr Epstein and his co-conspirators.”

A notification regarding the letter said it was co-signed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and requests a response by 20 November.

Previous Comments and Collaboration

The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee stated: “Andrew should be called to give evidence before the panel. The public has the right to know who was abusing women and underage individuals alongside Epstein.”

However, the lawmaker does not hold the ability to legally require the former prince and Congress itself cannot oblige statements from a overseas individual.

In 2020, US officials said that Mountbatten Windsor failed to respond to US requests for an discussion. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that authorities and the FBI had approached Andrew’s attorneys to inquire on his earlier promise that he was “prepared to help any appropriate law enforcement agency”.

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

Demands for Justice

The congressman said in a statement that “rich and well-connected men have escaped accountability for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the chance to be honest and deliver redress for the survivors. The committee will not stop fighting for answerability and clarity for victims of Epstein and his network of co-conspirators.”

Another signatory, a Virginia Democrat, said that after hearing evidence to the committee from Epstein’s survivors, as well as public reporting of leaked documents, “it is vital that Andrew works together with the ongoing investigation. If he is innocent, then he can prove his innocence.”

The lawmaker continued: “And if not, our probe will demonstrate that, and the victims will receive much-delayed justice. The royal household’s actions taking away Andrew of his titles indicate there is additional to this situation.”

The letter was sent on the same day the British king formally stripped Mountbatten Windsor of his royal title. Charles III officially made the change – which had been revealed a week ago – by issuing a “official document” which the royal office released in the Gazette, the UK’s government journal.