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A American legislative committee looking into sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein has reached out to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he undergo questioning as part of its investigation into Epstein’s wrongdoings.

In a letter released on Thursday, a California congressman, the senior Democrat on the House oversight committee, asked that King Charles III’s younger brother cooperate with its probe.

The formal request to answer questions follows a week after Mountbatten Windsor was stripped of his royal title and opted to give up his rented residence in Windsor.

Records and Accusations

Mountbatten Windsor’s name features in papers and flight logs subpoenaed from Epstein’s estate and publicly released by the committee. He has also been charged by one of Epstein’s survivors, the late Virginia Giuffre, of misconduct.

“The panel will examine allegations of misconduct by Mountbatten Windsor, and will demand data on Epstein’s operations, network, and accomplices based on the men’s longstanding and thoroughly recorded friendship,” the committee said in a press release.

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

Substance of the Communication

“It has been publicly reported that your friendship with Mr Epstein began in 1999 and that you remained close through and after his 2008 conviction for trafficking underage girls for sex work,” the letter said.

It added: “It has also been reported that you went with Epstein to his New York home, the Queen’s estate at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s personal island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been alleged of abusing young girls. This strong bond with Mr Epstein, along with the recently revealed 2011 digital communication in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further confirms our concern that you may have important details about the crimes committed by Mr Epstein and his accomplices.”

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

Previous Comments and Cooperation

The letter comes a week after another Democrat on the committee commented: “Andrew should be summoned to appear before the oversight committee. The people should be able to know who was abusing women and minors alongside Epstein.”

However, the lawmaker does not have the ability to legally require the ex-royal and Congress itself cannot compel statements from a overseas individual.

In 2020, US authorities said that Mountbatten Windsor failed to cooperate to US appeals for an interview. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that lawyers and the FBI had approached Andrew’s legal team to follow up on his previous pledge that he was “willing to help any appropriate law enforcement agency”.

“It’s reasonable for people to know whether Prince Andrew has honored with that pledge,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “provided no cooperation”.

Calls for Justice

The congressman said in a announcement that “rich and powerful men have avoided accountability for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the opportunity to come clean and provide justice for the victims. We will not stop advocating for accountability and openness for victims of Epstein and his gang of co-conspirators.”

Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after receiving accounts to the committee from Epstein’s victims, as well as media coverage of released files, “it is crucial that Andrew cooperates with the ongoing probe. If he is blameless, then he can vindicate himself.”

The lawmaker stated further: “And if not, our probe will show that, and the survivors will receive long overdue justice. The Royal Family’s actions taking away Andrew of his styles show there is additional to this situation.”

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