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A US congressional panel looking into pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein has sent a letter to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, requesting that he undergo questioning as part of its investigation into Epstein’s criminal operations.

In a letter released on Thursday, a lawmaker, the leading Democrat on the House investigative committee, urged that King Charles III’s brother help with its probe.

The formal request to provide testimony follows a week after Mountbatten Windsor was relieved of his royal title and opted to surrender his property in Windsor.

Documents and Accusations

Mountbatten Windsor’s name features in records and aviation records obtained from Epstein’s estate and made public by the committee. He has also been accused by one of Epstein’s accusers, the late Virginia Giuffre, of abuse.

“The committee will investigate accusations of wrongdoing by Mountbatten Windsor, and will seek data on Epstein’s operations, circle, and associates based on the men’s long-term and extensively reported friendship,” the committee said in a press release.

It sought details from Mountbatten Windsor on details of his friendship with Epstein, who killed himself in a New York prison cell in 2019. Andrew has consistently strongly denied any impropriety.

Content of the Request

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

It stated further: “It has also been claimed that you went with Epstein to his New York home, the Queen’s home at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s secluded island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been charged of abusing minors. This intimate friendship with Mr Epstein, along with the recently revealed 2011 electronic correspondence in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further bolsters our concern that you may have important details about the wrongdoings committed by Mr Epstein and his co-conspirators.”

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 give evidence before the oversight committee. The people should be able to know who was harming women and young girls alongside Epstein.”

However, the congressman does not possess the ability to subpoena the duke and Congress itself cannot compel testimony from a overseas individual.

In 2020, US authorities said that Mountbatten Windsor did not respond to US requests for an discussion. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that authorities and the FBI had contacted Andrew’s legal team to inquire on his previous pledge that he was “ready to help any suitable law enforcement agency”.

“It’s just for people to know whether Prince Andrew has honored with that pledge,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “given zero cooperation”.

Appeals for Accountability

The congressman said in a comment that “rich and influential men have evaded justice for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the opportunity to tell the truth and provide redress for the affected individuals. We will not cease fighting for accountability and transparency for victims of Epstein and his network of accomplices.”

Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after listening to testimony to the committee from Epstein’s victims, as well as news accounts of leaked documents, “it is essential that Andrew assists with the active inquiry. If he is blameless, then he can prove his innocence.”

The lawmaker continued: “And if not, our probe will demonstrate that, and the victims will receive belated redress. The royal household’s actions taking away Andrew of his styles suggest there is additional to this case.”

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