Congressional Panel Requests Deposition with Andrew in Jeffrey Epstein Inquiry
A US congressional committee investigating convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has sent a letter to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, requesting that he submit to a deposition as part of its inquiry into Epstein’s criminal operations.
In a communication made public on Thursday, a lawmaker, the leading Democrat on the House oversight committee, requested that King Charles III’s younger brother cooperate with its inquiry.
The formal request to answer questions comes a week after Mountbatten Windsor was lost his princely title and consented to vacate his property in Windsor.
Documents and Accusations
Mountbatten Windsor’s name is listed in records and travel logs subpoenaed from Epstein’s estate and publicly released by the committee. He has also been alleged by one of Epstein’s survivors, the late Virginia Giuffre, of sexual assault.
“The oversight committee will examine accusations of abuse by Mountbatten Windsor, and will demand data on Epstein’s activities, circle, and connections based on the men’s enduring and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a press release.
It demanded information from Mountbatten Windsor on particulars of his friendship with Epstein, who killed himself in a New York prison cell in 2019. Andrew has consistently strongly denied any wrongdoing.
Content of the Letter
“It has been documented that your relationship with Mr Epstein commenced in 1999 and that you stayed connected through and after his 2008 guilty verdict for procuring minors for prostitution,” the letter said.
It stated further: “It has also been alleged that you traveled 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, along 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 offenses committed by Mr Epstein and his partners in crime.”
A notification regarding the letter said it was supported by 13 other Democrats on the committee and demands a response by 20 November.
Past Comments and Assistance
The letter comes a week after another Democrat on the committee told: “Andrew should be called to give evidence before the panel. The citizens deserves to know who was assaulting women and minors alongside Epstein.”
However, the lawmaker does not possess the ability to compel the former prince and Congress itself cannot oblige statements from a non-US citizen.
In 2020, US agencies said that Mountbatten Windsor neglected to reply to US requests for an discussion. 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 public commitment that he was “prepared to help any suitable law enforcement agency”.
“It’s reasonable for people to know whether Prince Andrew has followed through with that public commitment,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “provided absolutely no cooperation”.
Calls for Transparency
The representative said in a statement that “wealthy and powerful men have escaped justice for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the option to be honest and secure justice for the affected individuals. The committee will not cease pushing for responsibility and openness for victims of Epstein and his network of partners.”
Another supporter, a Virginia Democrat, said that after receiving accounts to the committee from Epstein’s survivors, as well as news accounts of leaked documents, “it is essential that Andrew assists with the ongoing inquiry. If he is not guilty, then he can vindicate himself.”
The lawmaker continued: “And if not, our examination will reveal that, and the victims will receive long overdue justice. The Royal Family’s actions removing Andrew of his honors suggest there is further to this situation.”
The letter came on the same day the British king formally revoked Mountbatten Windsor of his HRH style. Charles III formally made the change – which had been declared a week ago – by issuing a “official document” which the monarch’s office released in the Gazette, the UK’s government journal.
