House Panel Requests Deposition with Prince Andrew in Epstein Probe
A American legislative body probing pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein has sent a letter to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, previously Britain’s Prince Andrew, asking that he submit to a deposition as part of its probe into Epstein’s illegal activities.
In a document made public on Thursday, a US representative, the leading Democrat on the House oversight committee, urged that King Charles III’s younger brother cooperate with its investigation.
The written appeal to answer questions arrives a week after Mountbatten Windsor was stripped of his HRH style and consented to surrender his leased home in Windsor.
Records and Allegations
Mountbatten Windsor’s name is listed in papers and aviation records subpoenaed 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 panel will investigate allegations of abuse by Mountbatten Windsor, and will request information on Epstein’s activities, circle, and accomplices based on the men’s enduring and thoroughly recorded friendship,” the committee said in a announcement.
It demanded particulars from Mountbatten Windsor on particulars of his association with Epstein, who took his own life in a New York detention facility in 2019. Andrew has consistently vehemently rejected any misconduct.
Substance of the Letter
“It has been widely reported that your association with Mr Epstein started in 1999 and that you stayed connected through and after his 2008 sentencing for soliciting minors for commercial sex acts,” 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 alleged of harming minors. 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 supports our belief that you may have important details about the wrongdoings committed by Mr Epstein and his co-conspirators.”
A announcement regarding the letter said it was supported by 13 other Democrats on the committee and demands a reply by 20 November.
Earlier Remarks and Assistance
The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee stated: “Andrew should be asked to give evidence before the oversight committee. The people deserves to know who was abusing women and young girls alongside Epstein.”
However, the congressman does not possess the ability to compel the duke and Congress itself cannot compel evidence from a overseas individual.
In 2020, US officials said that Mountbatten Windsor did not respond 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 follow up on his earlier promise that he was “prepared to help any suitable law enforcement agency”.
“It’s fair for people to know whether Prince Andrew has fulfilled with that public commitment,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “provided absolutely no cooperation”.
Demands for Accountability
The lawmaker said in a comment that “affluent and powerful men have avoided justice for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the option to come clean and secure accountability for the victims. We will not halt pushing for answerability and transparency for victims of Epstein and his gang of partners.”
Another signatory, a Virginia Democrat, said that after hearing evidence to the committee from Epstein’s victims, as well as media coverage of released files, “it is crucial that Andrew assists with the current investigation. If he is innocent, then he can prove his innocence.”
The lawmaker added: “And if not, our investigation will demonstrate that, and the affected individuals will receive long overdue redress. The royal household’s actions removing Andrew of his honors show there is further to this case.”
The letter came on the same day the British king publicly removed Mountbatten Windsor of his princely title. Charles III officially made the alteration – which had been announced a week ago – by issuing a “letters patent” which the crown office made public in the Gazette, the UK’s official public record.
