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A American legislative panel looking into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has sent a letter to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, previously Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he undergo an interview as part of its probe into Epstein’s illegal activities.

In a communication made public on Thursday, a California congressman, the senior Democrat on the House investigative committee, requested that King Charles III’s younger brother help with its investigation.

The official demand to provide testimony follows a week after Mountbatten Windsor was stripped of his HRH style and agreed to give up his leased home in Windsor.

Documents and Accusations

Mountbatten Windsor’s name appears in papers and flight logs secured from Epstein’s estate and publicly released 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 seek details on Epstein’s activities, associates, and associates based on the men’s enduring and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a statement.

It demanded particulars from Mountbatten Windsor on details of his association with Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York prison cell in 2019. Andrew has repeatedly categorically denied any wrongdoing.

Substance of the Letter

“It has been publicly reported that your association with Mr Epstein began in 1999 and that you stayed connected through and after his 2008 conviction for soliciting minors for commercial sex acts,” the letter said.

It continued: “It has also been alleged that you traveled with Epstein to his New York property, the Queen’s residence at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s personal island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been accused of abusing underage individuals. This close relationship with Mr Epstein, along with the freshly uncovered 2011 electronic correspondence in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further bolsters our belief 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 supported by 13 other Democrats on the committee and demands a response by 20 November.

Earlier Statements and Cooperation

The letter arrives a week after another Democrat on the committee commented: “Andrew should be asked to appear before the panel. The people should be able to know who was harming women and minors alongside Epstein.”

However, the lawmaker does not hold the ability to compel the duke and Congress itself cannot force statements from a foreign national.

In 2020, US authorities said that Mountbatten Windsor did not respond to US requests for an meeting. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that authorities and the FBI had reached out to Andrew’s attorneys to check on his public commitment that he was “willing to help any relevant 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 “offered zero cooperation”.

Appeals for Accountability

The lawmaker said in a comment that “rich and powerful men have evaded the law for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the option to tell the truth and deliver justice for the affected individuals. The committee will not halt advocating for accountability and transparency for victims of Epstein and his gang of accomplices.”

Another supporter, 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 essential that Andrew works together with the active inquiry. If he is blameless, then he can prove his innocence.”

The lawmaker added: “And if not, our examination will demonstrate that, and the victims will receive much-delayed accountability. The Royal Family’s actions removing Andrew of his honors indicate there is further to this situation.”

The letter was issued on the same day the British king publicly removed Mountbatten Windsor of his HRH style. Charles III officially made the alteration – which had been declared a week ago – by issuing a “letters patent” which the monarch’s office made public in the Gazette, the UK’s public registry.