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A American legislative panel investigating convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has formally written to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, once Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he submit to an interview as part of its probe into Epstein’s criminal operations.

In a document released on Thursday, a lawmaker, the top Democrat on the House oversight committee, urged that King Charles III’s younger brother assist with its inquiry.

The official demand to answer questions comes a week after Mountbatten Windsor was stripped of his HRH style and agreed to give up his leased home in Windsor.

Files and Accusations

Mountbatten Windsor’s name appears in records and flight logs obtained from Epstein’s estate and made public by the committee. He has also been charged by one of Epstein’s victims, the late Virginia Giuffre, of misconduct.

“The panel will examine allegations of misconduct by Mountbatten Windsor, and will request details on Epstein’s network, network, and associates based on the men’s longstanding and well-documented friendship,” the committee said in a press release.

It demanded details from Mountbatten Windsor on specifics of his friendship with Epstein, who took his own life in a New York jail cell in 2019. Andrew has consistently strongly denied any misconduct.

Details of the Letter

“It has been widely reported that your relationship with Mr Epstein started in 1999 and that you remained close through and after his 2008 guilty verdict for trafficking underage girls for commercial sex acts,” the letter said.

It continued: “It has also been alleged that you journeyed with Epstein to his New York residence, the Queen’s residence at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s personal island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been accused of harming young girls. This strong bond with Mr Epstein, along with the recently revealed 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 crimes committed by Mr Epstein and his partners in crime.”

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

Previous Remarks and Collaboration

The letter comes a week after another Democrat on the committee stated: “Andrew should be asked to appear before the oversight committee. The citizens has the right to know who was harming women and underage individuals alongside Epstein.”

However, the representative does not possess the ability to compel the ex-royal and Congress itself cannot oblige statements from a non-US citizen.

In 2020, US officials said that Mountbatten Windsor failed to respond to US demands for an meeting. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that prosecutors and the FBI had approached Andrew’s legal team to follow up on his earlier promise that he was “ready to help any suitable law enforcement agency”.

“It’s fair for people to know whether Prince Andrew has followed through with that assurance,” the attorney said, adding that to date he had “provided no cooperation”.

Appeals for Transparency

The representative said in a comment that “wealthy and influential men have avoided accountability for far too long. Now, one-time Prince Andrew has the opportunity to come clean and secure accountability for the victims. Oversight Democrats will not cease advocating for accountability and transparency for victims of Epstein and his group of accomplices.”

Another signatory, a Virginia Democrat, said that after receiving accounts to the committee from Epstein’s survivors, as well as media coverage of released files, “it is essential that Andrew cooperates with the active investigation. If he is innocent, then he can clear his name.”

The lawmaker added: “And if not, our examination will reveal that, and the affected individuals will receive belated accountability. The royal household’s actions stripping Andrew of his titles suggest there is additional to this situation.”

The letter came on the same day the British king publicly revoked Mountbatten Windsor of his princely title. Charles III formally made the alteration – which had been declared a week ago – by issuing a “letters patent” which the royal office published in the Gazette, the UK’s public registry.