Congressional Committee Seeks Deposition with the Duke of York in Jeffrey Epstein Investigation
A US congressional committee investigating sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein has formally written to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he submit to an interview as part of its probe into Epstein’s illegal activities.
In a letter published on Thursday, a US representative, the leading Democrat on the House oversight committee, asked that King Charles III’s younger brother help with its probe.
The official demand to respond to queries comes a week after Mountbatten Windsor was relieved of his royal title and agreed to give up his property in Windsor.
Documents and Allegations
Mountbatten Windsor’s name is listed in papers and flight logs obtained from Epstein’s estate and made public by the committee. He has also been accused by one of Epstein’s accusers, the late Virginia Giuffre, of misconduct.
“The committee will probe allegations of misconduct by Mountbatten Windsor, and will demand details on Epstein’s operations, network, and accomplices based on the men’s long-term and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a statement.
It requested details from Mountbatten Windsor on specifics of his friendship with Epstein, who killed himself in a New York jail cell in 2019. Andrew has repeatedly categorically denied any impropriety.
Substance of the Request
“It has been documented that your association with Mr Epstein began in 1999 and that you stayed connected through and after his 2008 guilty verdict for trafficking underage girls for prostitution,” the letter said.
It continued: “It has also been claimed that you went with Epstein to his New York residence, the Queen’s residence at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s personal island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been accused of harming underage individuals. This intimate friendship with Mr Epstein, coupled with the freshly uncovered 2011 email exchange in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further supports our belief that you may have valuable information about the wrongdoings committed by Mr Epstein and his co-conspirators.”
A statement regarding the letter said it was co-signed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and demands a reply by 20 November.
Previous Remarks and Collaboration
The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee stated: “Andrew should be called to give evidence before the oversight committee. The citizens deserves to know who was abusing women and minors alongside Epstein.”
However, the lawmaker does not possess the authority to subpoena the ex-royal and Congress itself cannot compel evidence from a overseas individual.
In 2020, US agencies said that Mountbatten Windsor neglected to cooperate to US requests for an meeting. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that prosecutors and the FBI had contacted Andrew’s legal team to inquire on his public commitment 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 assurance,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “provided zero cooperation”.
Demands for Justice
The representative said in a statement that “wealthy and influential men have escaped justice for far too long. Now, ex- Prince Andrew has the opportunity to come clean and deliver justice for the survivors. We will not cease advocating for answerability and openness for victims of Epstein and his group of accomplices.”
Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after hearing accounts to the committee from Epstein’s survivors, as well as news accounts of released files, “it is essential that Andrew assists with the ongoing inquiry. If he is innocent, then he can clear his name.”
The lawmaker continued: “And if not, our probe will demonstrate that, and the affected individuals will receive long overdue justice. The royal household’s actions removing Andrew of his honors show there is additional to this case.”
The letter was issued on the same day the British king officially revoked Mountbatten Windsor of his royal title. Charles III publicly made the alteration – which had been announced a week ago – by issuing a “royal decree” which the royal office released in the Gazette, the UK’s public registry.