House Committee Requests Deposition with Prince Andrew in Epstein Probe
A US congressional committee probing convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has reached out to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, requesting that he participate in a deposition as part of its inquiry into Epstein’s wrongdoings.
In a communication released on Thursday, a lawmaker, the top Democrat on the House oversight panel, requested that King Charles III’s sibling help with its investigation.
The official demand to respond to queries follows a week after Mountbatten Windsor was lost his HRH style and consented to surrender his property in Windsor.
Files and Accusations
Mountbatten Windsor’s name features in papers and aviation records subpoenaed from Epstein’s estate and publicly released by the committee. He has also been charged by one of Epstein’s survivors, the late Virginia Giuffre, of sexual assault.
“The committee will investigate accusations of abuse by Mountbatten Windsor, and will request information on Epstein’s activities, network, and accomplices based on the men’s enduring and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a announcement.
It demanded information from Mountbatten Windsor on specifics of his relationship with Epstein, who killed himself in a New York jail cell in 2019. Andrew has always vehemently rejected any wrongdoing.
Content of the Communication
“It has been documented that your friendship with Mr Epstein began in 1999 and that you remained close through and after his 2008 sentencing for trafficking underage girls for commercial sex acts,” the letter said.
It stated further: “It has also been claimed that you went with Epstein to his New York home, the Queen’s home at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s personal island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been alleged of abusing young girls. This strong bond with Mr Epstein, along with the newly disclosed 2011 digital communication in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further supports our suspicion that you may have valuable information about the wrongdoings committed by Mr Epstein and his partners in crime.”
A notification 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 Assistance
The letter comes a week after another Democrat on the committee told: “Andrew should be summoned to testify before the committee. The public deserves to know who was abusing women and young girls alongside Epstein.”
However, the congressman does not have the ability to legally require the duke and Congress itself cannot compel evidence from a non-US citizen.
In 2020, US agencies said that Mountbatten Windsor neglected to respond to US demands for an interview. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that prosecutors and the FBI had contacted Andrew’s lawyers to inquire on his previous pledge that he was “prepared to help any appropriate law enforcement agency”.
“It’s fair for people to know whether Prince Andrew has fulfilled with that public commitment,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “offered no cooperation”.
Calls for Justice
The congressman said in a comment that “rich and powerful men have evaded the law for far too long. Now, one-time Prince Andrew has the opportunity to be honest and secure redress for the victims. We will not cease fighting for answerability and clarity for survivors of Epstein and his network of co-conspirators.”
Another supporter, a Virginia Democrat, said that after receiving evidence to the committee from Epstein’s accusers, as well as news accounts of disclosed papers, “it is essential that Andrew cooperates with the active inquiry. If he is not guilty, then he can vindicate himself.”
The lawmaker added: “And if not, our examination will reveal that, and the affected individuals will receive much-delayed accountability. The Royal Family’s actions removing Andrew of his titles indicate there is more to this case.”
The letter was sent on the same day the British king publicly removed Mountbatten Windsor of his HRH style. Charles III officially made the change – which had been declared a week ago – by issuing a “letters patent” which the royal office released in the Gazette, the UK’s public registry.
