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A American legislative body looking into sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein has formally written to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, asking that he submit to an interview as part of its inquiry into Epstein’s wrongdoings.

In a letter made public on Thursday, a lawmaker, the senior Democrat on the House investigative committee, urged that King Charles III’s younger brother assist with its probe.

The formal request to answer questions comes a week after Mountbatten Windsor was lost his royal title and agreed to surrender his property in Windsor.

Records and Claims

Mountbatten Windsor’s name is listed in papers and aviation records secured from Epstein’s estate and publicly released by the committee. He has also been accused by one of Epstein’s victims, the late Virginia Giuffre, of abuse.

“The committee will probe accusations of misconduct by Mountbatten Windsor, and will demand information on Epstein’s activities, circle, and accomplices based on the men’s longstanding and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a statement.

It demanded information from Mountbatten Windsor on particulars of his association with Epstein, who killed himself in a New York jail cell in 2019. Andrew has consistently vehemently rejected any wrongdoing.

Content of the Request

“It has been publicly reported that your friendship with Mr Epstein began in 1999 and that you stayed connected through and after his 2008 guilty verdict for procuring minors for sex work,” the letter said.

It continued: “It has also been alleged 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 bolsters our concern that you may have key insights about the offenses committed by Mr Epstein and his accomplices.”

A notification regarding the letter said it was endorsed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and requests a answer by 20 November.

Past Statements and Cooperation

The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee told: “Andrew should be asked to appear before the panel. The public has the right to know who was assaulting women and young girls alongside Epstein.”

However, the lawmaker does not have the power to legally require the duke and Congress itself cannot compel evidence from a foreign national.

In 2020, US officials 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 legal team to follow up on his public commitment that he was “ready to help any appropriate law enforcement agency”.

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

Calls for Accountability

The representative said in a announcement that “affluent and influential men have escaped the law for far too long. Now, one-time Prince Andrew has the chance to tell the truth and secure redress for the survivors. The committee will not halt fighting for answerability and openness for those affected of Epstein and his gang of accomplices.”

Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after listening to testimony to the committee from Epstein’s survivors, as well as news accounts of disclosed papers, “it is essential that Andrew works together with the active probe. If he is blameless, then he can prove his innocence.”

The lawmaker stated further: “And if not, our investigation will show that, and the affected individuals will receive long overdue redress. The Royal Family’s actions stripping Andrew of his honors suggest there is more to this story.”

The letter was issued on the same day the British king formally removed Mountbatten Windsor of his princely title. Charles III formally made the adjustment – which had been revealed a week ago – by issuing a “letters patent” which the crown office published in the Gazette, the UK’s official public record.