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A American legislative body investigating pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein has reached out to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, previously Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he undergo questioning as part of its investigation into Epstein’s illegal activities.

In a document released on Thursday, a California congressman, the top Democrat on the House oversight committee, asked that King Charles III’s brother help with its inquiry.

The official demand to provide testimony arrives a week after Mountbatten Windsor was relieved of his princely title and agreed to give up his rented residence in Windsor.

Records and Allegations

Mountbatten Windsor’s name is listed in records and flight logs 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 panel will examine claims of wrongdoing by Mountbatten Windsor, and will demand details on Epstein’s activities, circle, and connections based on the men’s enduring and well-documented friendship,” the committee said in a press release.

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

Content of the Request

“It has been publicly reported that your friendship with Mr Epstein started in 1999 and that you continued associating through and after his 2008 sentencing for procuring minors for commercial sex acts,” the letter said.

It stated further: “It has also been reported that you journeyed with Epstein to his New York residence, 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, combined 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 crimes committed by Mr Epstein and his co-conspirators.”

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

Earlier Comments and Collaboration

The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee commented: “Andrew should be called to give evidence before the panel. The citizens has the right to know who was abusing women and minors alongside Epstein.”

However, the congressman does not hold the authority to legally require the duke and Congress itself cannot oblige evidence from a overseas individual.

In 2020, US agencies said that Mountbatten Windsor did not respond to US demands for an discussion. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that prosecutors and the FBI had reached out to Andrew’s attorneys to follow up on his previous pledge that he was “willing to help any relevant law enforcement agency”.

“It’s fair for people to know whether Prince Andrew has honored with that public commitment,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “offered no cooperation”.

Calls for Transparency

The representative said in a announcement that “affluent and influential men have evaded justice for far too long. Now, one-time Prince Andrew has the option to come clean and deliver justice for the affected individuals. The committee will not halt fighting for accountability and clarity for survivors of Epstein and his group of accomplices.”

Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after listening to evidence to the committee from Epstein’s accusers, as well as news accounts of released files, “it is crucial that Andrew assists with the active inquiry. If he is innocent, then he can clear his name.”

The lawmaker stated further: “And if not, our investigation will show that, and the victims will receive belated redress. The royal household’s actions removing Andrew of his styles suggest there is more to this story.”

The letter was sent on the same day the British king officially stripped Mountbatten Windsor of his HRH style. Charles III formally made the change – which had been announced a week ago – by issuing a “royal decree” which the monarch’s office released in the Gazette, the UK’s government journal.