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A US congressional body looking into sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein has formally written to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he undergo an interview as part of its investigation into Epstein’s illegal activities.

In a document made public on Thursday, a US representative, the leading Democrat on the House oversight committee, asked that King Charles III’s brother assist with its probe.

The written appeal to answer questions comes a week after Mountbatten Windsor was relieved of his royal title and agreed to give up his property in Windsor.

Files and Allegations

Mountbatten Windsor’s name is listed in records and flight logs secured from Epstein’s estate and made public by the committee. He has also been accused by one of Epstein’s accusers, the late Virginia Giuffre, of sexual assault.

“The oversight committee will probe allegations of wrongdoing by Mountbatten Windsor, and will request details on Epstein’s activities, network, and accomplices based on the men’s long-term and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a statement.

It sought information from Mountbatten Windsor on specifics of his friendship with Epstein, who killed himself in a New York jail cell in 2019. Andrew has always strongly denied any wrongdoing.

Details of the Request

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

It added: “It has also been reported 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 accused of abusing underage individuals. This close relationship with Mr Epstein, along with the freshly uncovered 2011 digital communication in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further confirms our belief that you may have important details about the crimes committed by Mr Epstein and his accomplices.”

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

Earlier Comments and Assistance

The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee told: “Andrew should be asked to give evidence before the oversight committee. The people deserves to know who was abusing women and minors alongside Epstein.”

However, the lawmaker does not have the power to legally require the duke and Congress itself cannot oblige testimony from a foreign national.

In 2020, US officials said that Mountbatten Windsor failed to respond to US requests for an meeting. 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 follow up on his previous pledge that he was “prepared to help any appropriate law enforcement agency”.

“It’s reasonable for people to know whether Prince Andrew has fulfilled with that assurance,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “given absolutely no cooperation”.

Demands for Justice

The lawmaker said in a comment that “wealthy and powerful men have evaded the law for far too long. Now, one-time Prince Andrew has the option to be honest and deliver justice for the survivors. The committee will not stop pushing for accountability and clarity for those affected of Epstein and his group of accomplices.”

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

The lawmaker continued: “And if not, our probe will show that, and the affected individuals will receive much-delayed accountability. The monarchy’s actions stripping Andrew of his honors suggest there is further to this case.”

The letter came on the same day the British king publicly revoked Mountbatten Windsor of his royal title. Charles III officially made the alteration – which had been announced a week ago – by issuing a “letters patent” which the crown office made public in the Gazette, the UK’s government journal.