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A US congressional panel probing convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has sent a letter to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, formerly Britain’s Prince Andrew, requesting that he submit to a deposition as part of its inquiry into Epstein’s wrongdoings.

In a document made public on Thursday, a California congressman, the senior Democrat on the House oversight panel, asked that King Charles III’s younger brother cooperate with its investigation.

The written appeal to respond to queries arrives a week after Mountbatten Windsor was stripped of his HRH style and consented to surrender his leased home in Windsor.

Documents and Claims

Mountbatten Windsor’s name features in documents and aviation records secured 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 oversight committee will probe claims of abuse by Mountbatten Windsor, and will demand information on Epstein’s operations, network, and associates based on the men’s enduring and thoroughly recorded friendship,” the committee said in a announcement.

It sought information from Mountbatten Windsor on particulars of his association with Epstein, who killed himself in a New York jail cell in 2019. Andrew has consistently strongly denied any wrongdoing.

Details of the Letter

“It has been publicly reported that your relationship with Mr Epstein began in 1999 and that you remained close through and after his 2008 conviction for procuring minors for prostitution,” the letter said.

It added: “It has also been alleged that you went with Epstein to his New York home, the Queen’s estate at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s secluded island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been alleged of abusing young girls. This strong bond with Mr Epstein, coupled with the freshly uncovered 2011 digital communication in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further confirms our suspicion that you may have key insights about the crimes committed by Mr Epstein and his co-conspirators.”

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

Previous Remarks and Collaboration

The letter arrives a week after another Democrat on the committee told: “Andrew should be summoned to appear before the panel. The people should be able to know who was abusing women and young girls alongside Epstein.”

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

In 2020, US agencies said that Mountbatten Windsor neglected to respond to US demands for an discussion. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that lawyers and the FBI had reached out to Andrew’s attorneys to inquire on his previous pledge that he was “ready to help any appropriate law enforcement agency”.

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

Appeals for Transparency

The representative said in a statement that “wealthy and powerful men have evaded the law for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the chance to be honest and provide accountability for the victims. We will not cease advocating for accountability and openness for survivors of Epstein and his network of accomplices.”

Another endorser, a Virginia Democrat, said that after listening to accounts to the committee from Epstein’s survivors, as well as media coverage of disclosed papers, “it is crucial that Andrew cooperates with the active investigation. If he is not guilty, then he can clear his name.”

The lawmaker continued: “And if not, our probe will show that, and the survivors will receive long overdue accountability. The royal household’s actions removing Andrew of his titles show there is additional to this case.”

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