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A US congressional committee investigating convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has sent a letter to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he undergo a deposition as part of its investigation into Epstein’s criminal operations.

In a letter released on Thursday, a lawmaker, the top Democrat on the House investigative committee, requested that King Charles III’s younger brother help with its investigation.

The formal request to respond to queries arrives a week after Mountbatten Windsor was lost his HRH style and opted to give up his leased home in Windsor.

Files and Accusations

Mountbatten Windsor’s name appears in records and aviation records obtained 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 abuse.

“The oversight committee will probe accusations of abuse by Mountbatten Windsor, and will demand details on Epstein’s operations, network, and associates based on the men’s enduring and thoroughly recorded friendship,” the committee said in a announcement.

It sought particulars from Mountbatten Windsor on details of his friendship with Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York detention facility in 2019. Andrew has repeatedly vehemently rejected any wrongdoing.

Substance of the Letter

“It has been documented that your relationship with Mr Epstein started in 1999 and that you stayed connected through and after his 2008 sentencing for soliciting minors for sex work,” the letter said.

It added: “It has also been claimed that you went with Epstein to his New York property, the Queen’s estate at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s private island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been charged of assaulting young girls. This intimate friendship with Mr Epstein, combined with the newly disclosed 2011 email exchange in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further confirms our belief that you may have valuable information about the wrongdoings committed by Mr Epstein and his accomplices.”

A notification regarding the letter said it was co-signed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and asks a answer by 20 November.

Previous Comments and Assistance

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

However, the representative does not have the authority to compel the ex-royal and Congress itself cannot oblige testimony from a overseas individual.

In 2020, US officials said that Mountbatten Windsor did not cooperate to US demands for an meeting. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that authorities and the FBI had contacted Andrew’s attorneys to check on his earlier promise that he was “willing to help any relevant law enforcement agency”.

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

Demands for Accountability

The representative said in a comment that “rich and well-connected men have evaded accountability for far too long. Now, one-time Prince Andrew has the chance to come clean and provide accountability for the affected individuals. Oversight Democrats will not cease advocating for accountability and openness for those affected of Epstein and his gang of accomplices.”

Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after receiving accounts to the committee from Epstein’s victims, as well as media coverage of leaked documents, “it is crucial that Andrew cooperates with the active investigation. If he is innocent, then he can vindicate himself.”

The lawmaker continued: “And if not, our probe will demonstrate that, and the survivors will receive much-delayed accountability. The Royal Family’s actions removing Andrew of his honors show there is additional to this case.”

The letter came on the same day the British king formally removed Mountbatten Windsor of his royal title. Charles III formally made the change – which had been announced a week ago – by issuing a “letters patent” which the royal office made public in the Gazette, the UK’s public registry.