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A American legislative committee investigating convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has formally written to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, requesting that he submit to questioning as part of its inquiry into Epstein’s illegal activities.

In a document made public on Thursday, a lawmaker, the senior Democrat on the House oversight panel, asked that King Charles III’s younger brother cooperate with its probe.

The formal request to respond to queries follows a week after Mountbatten Windsor was stripped of his princely title and opted to surrender his rented residence in Windsor.

Records and Accusations

Mountbatten Windsor’s name is listed in records and travel logs obtained from Epstein’s estate and disclosed by the committee. He has also been alleged by one of Epstein’s accusers, the late Virginia Giuffre, of sexual assault.

“The committee will examine allegations of misconduct by Mountbatten Windsor, and will request information on Epstein’s operations, associates, and accomplices based on the men’s longstanding and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a press release.

It requested details from Mountbatten Windsor on specifics of his relationship with Epstein, who took his own life in a New York prison cell in 2019. Andrew has always categorically denied any misconduct.

Details of the Letter

“It has been widely reported that your association with Mr Epstein commenced in 1999 and that you remained close through and after his 2008 conviction for procuring minors for prostitution,” the letter said.

It stated further: “It has also been reported that you traveled with Epstein to his New York home, the Queen’s estate at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s personal island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been accused of assaulting underage individuals. This intimate friendship with Mr Epstein, combined with the newly disclosed 2011 electronic correspondence in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further bolsters our suspicion that you may have valuable information about the offenses committed by Mr Epstein and his partners in crime.”

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

Past Remarks and Cooperation

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

However, the representative does not possess the power to subpoena the former prince and Congress itself cannot compel testimony from a foreign national.

In 2020, US officials said that Mountbatten Windsor failed to reply to US appeals for an meeting. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that authorities and the FBI had reached out to Andrew’s lawyers to follow up 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 assurance,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “provided zero cooperation”.

Appeals for Transparency

The lawmaker said in a comment that “rich and powerful men have avoided justice for far too long. Now, one-time Prince Andrew has the opportunity to be honest and deliver accountability for the affected individuals. The committee will not halt pushing for accountability and clarity for victims of Epstein and his gang of accomplices.”

Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after listening to accounts to the committee from Epstein’s victims, as well as media coverage of disclosed papers, “it is essential that Andrew assists with the ongoing inquiry. If he is not guilty, then he can vindicate himself.”

The lawmaker added: “And if not, our investigation will show that, and the victims will receive much-delayed accountability. The Royal Family’s actions removing Andrew of his styles show there is further to this situation.”

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