Congressional Committee Asks for Questioning with the Duke of York in Epstein Inquiry
A US congressional panel investigating convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has sent a letter to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, asking that he undergo questioning as part of its investigation into Epstein’s wrongdoings.
In a letter released on Thursday, a California congressman, the leading Democrat on the House oversight panel, urged that King Charles III’s brother assist with its inquiry.
The written appeal to respond to queries follows a week after Mountbatten Windsor was relieved of his royal title and opted to give up his rented residence in Windsor.
Documents and Allegations
Mountbatten Windsor’s name features in papers and flight logs subpoenaed from Epstein’s estate and made public by the committee. He has also been alleged by one of Epstein’s accusers, the late Virginia Giuffre, of misconduct.
“The committee will examine allegations of wrongdoing by Mountbatten Windsor, and will seek details on Epstein’s activities, associates, and associates based on the men’s long-term and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a press release.
It sought details from Mountbatten Windsor on particulars of his relationship with Epstein, who took his own life in a New York prison cell in 2019. Andrew has always vehemently rejected any misconduct.
Content of the Communication
“It has been publicly reported that your friendship with Mr Epstein started in 1999 and that you continued associating through and after his 2008 guilty verdict for soliciting minors for prostitution,” the letter said.
It added: “It has also been reported that you traveled 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 harming minors. This strong bond with Mr Epstein, combined with the recently revealed 2011 email exchange in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further supports our suspicion that you may have key insights about the crimes committed by Mr Epstein and his partners in crime.”
A statement regarding the letter said it was co-signed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and demands a reply by 20 November.
Past Statements and Collaboration
The letter arrives a week after another Democrat on the committee stated: “Andrew should be asked to testify before the committee. The public should be able to know who was assaulting women and underage individuals alongside Epstein.”
However, the lawmaker does not have the ability to subpoena the duke and Congress itself cannot oblige statements from a overseas individual.
In 2020, US officials said that Mountbatten Windsor failed to reply to US demands for an interview. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that lawyers and the FBI had reached out to Andrew’s legal team to check on his previous pledge that he was “ready to help any appropriate law enforcement agency”.
“It’s just for people to know whether Prince Andrew has followed through with that pledge,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “given absolutely no cooperation”.
Calls for Transparency
The lawmaker said in a announcement that “rich and well-connected men have escaped justice for far too long. Now, ex- Prince Andrew has the opportunity to tell the truth and provide redress for the victims. We will not stop pushing for responsibility and transparency 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 victims, as well as public reporting of leaked documents, “it is vital that Andrew assists with the current probe. If he is blameless, then he can vindicate himself.”
The lawmaker continued: “And if not, our probe will demonstrate that, and the affected individuals will receive belated justice. The Royal Family’s actions removing Andrew of his titles show there is additional to this case.”
The letter was sent on the same day the British king officially removed Mountbatten Windsor of his princely title. Charles III publicly made the adjustment – which had been revealed a week ago – by issuing a “royal decree” which the monarch’s office published in the Gazette, the UK’s public registry.
