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A American legislative body investigating convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has reached out to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, previously Britain’s Prince Andrew, requesting that he submit to a deposition as part of its investigation into Epstein’s wrongdoings.

In a letter made public on Thursday, a US representative, the senior Democrat on the House oversight panel, requested that King Charles III’s sibling assist with its inquiry.

The official demand to answer questions follows a week after Mountbatten Windsor was lost his royal title and agreed to vacate his rented residence in Windsor.

Files and Claims

Mountbatten Windsor’s name is listed in records and aviation records secured 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 sexual assault.

“The committee will probe claims of misconduct by Mountbatten Windsor, and will request data on Epstein’s operations, associates, and connections based on the men’s long-term and well-documented friendship,” the committee said in a announcement.

It demanded information from Mountbatten Windsor on particulars of his friendship with Epstein, who took his own life in a New York prison cell in 2019. Andrew has consistently strongly denied any misconduct.

Substance of the Communication

“It has been publicly reported that your friendship with Mr Epstein commenced in 1999 and that you remained close through and after his 2008 conviction for trafficking underage girls for sex work,” the letter said.

It added: “It has also been claimed that you traveled with Epstein to his New York property, the Queen’s residence at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s personal island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been charged of harming young girls. This strong bond with Mr Epstein, coupled with the recently revealed 2011 digital communication in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further confirms our concern that you may have important details about the wrongdoings committed by Mr Epstein and his co-conspirators.”

A announcement regarding the letter said it was supported by 13 other Democrats on the committee and demands a reply by 20 November.

Earlier Comments and Assistance

The letter arrives a week after another Democrat on the committee stated: “Andrew should be asked to appear before the panel. The people deserves to know who was assaulting women and young girls alongside Epstein.”

However, the representative does not have the ability to legally require the former prince and Congress itself cannot oblige statements from a foreign national.

In 2020, US authorities said that Mountbatten Windsor did not reply to US requests for an interview. 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 previous pledge that he was “prepared to help any suitable law enforcement agency”.

“It’s just for people to know whether Prince Andrew has followed through with that public commitment,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “provided zero cooperation”.

Calls for Transparency

The lawmaker said in a announcement that “wealthy and powerful men have avoided the law for far too long. Now, ex- Prince Andrew has the opportunity to be honest and deliver accountability for the survivors. The committee will not halt pushing for answerability and transparency for those affected of Epstein and his gang of partners.”

Another supporter, a Virginia Democrat, said that after hearing evidence to the committee from Epstein’s accusers, as well as media coverage of leaked documents, “it is crucial that Andrew cooperates with the ongoing inquiry. If he is innocent, then he can clear his name.”

The lawmaker added: “And if not, our examination will show that, and the survivors will receive much-delayed accountability. The royal household’s actions stripping Andrew of his honors suggest there is more to this case.”

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