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A US congressional panel looking into sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein has reached out to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, previously Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he participate in an interview as part of its investigation into Epstein’s wrongdoings.

In a letter released on Thursday, a lawmaker, the top Democrat on the House oversight panel, asked that King Charles III’s sibling help with its inquiry.

The written appeal to answer questions comes a week after Mountbatten Windsor was lost his royal title and agreed to surrender his rented residence in Windsor.

Documents and Accusations

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

“The committee will examine allegations of wrongdoing by Mountbatten Windsor, and will request information on Epstein’s operations, network, and accomplices based on the men’s long-term and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a announcement.

It requested particulars from Mountbatten Windsor on particulars of his friendship with Epstein, who took his own life in a New York jail cell in 2019. Andrew has repeatedly categorically denied any impropriety.

Substance of the Communication

“It has been publicly reported that your relationship with Mr Epstein commenced in 1999 and that you continued associating through and after his 2008 sentencing for procuring minors for commercial sex acts,” the letter said.

It added: “It has also been reported that you traveled with Epstein to his New York home, the Queen’s home at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s private island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been alleged of assaulting young girls. 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 bolsters our suspicion that you may have valuable information about the offenses committed by Mr Epstein and his accomplices.”

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

Previous Statements and Cooperation

The letter comes a week after another Democrat on the committee told: “Andrew should be asked to give evidence before the panel. The people should be able to know who was abusing women and underage individuals alongside Epstein.”

However, the lawmaker does not have the authority to subpoena the former prince and Congress itself cannot force statements from a foreign national.

In 2020, US agencies said that Mountbatten Windsor neglected to cooperate to US requests for an discussion. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that prosecutors and the FBI had approached Andrew’s legal team to inquire 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 followed through with that pledge,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “provided no cooperation”.

Calls for Justice

The congressman said in a comment that “wealthy and powerful men have evaded accountability for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the opportunity to be honest and provide justice for the survivors. Oversight Democrats will not halt fighting for answerability and transparency for those affected of Epstein and his group of co-conspirators.”

Another signatory, a Virginia Democrat, said that after hearing accounts to the committee from Epstein’s victims, as well as news accounts of released files, “it is crucial that Andrew cooperates with the ongoing probe. If he is blameless, then he can clear his name.”

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

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