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A US congressional panel looking into pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein has formally written to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, previously Britain’s Prince Andrew, demanding that he undergo a deposition as part of its probe into Epstein’s wrongdoings.

In a communication made public on Thursday, a US representative, the senior Democrat on the House investigative committee, requested that King Charles III’s younger brother assist with its inquiry.

The formal request to respond to queries arrives a week after Mountbatten Windsor was stripped of his princely title and agreed to surrender his rented residence in Windsor.

Records and Accusations

Mountbatten Windsor’s name features in papers and travel logs obtained from Epstein’s estate and made public by the committee. He has also been charged by one of Epstein’s accusers, the late Virginia Giuffre, of sexual assault.

“The oversight committee will investigate allegations of wrongdoing by Mountbatten Windsor, and will seek information on Epstein’s network, network, and accomplices based on the men’s longstanding and thoroughly recorded friendship,” the committee said in a announcement.

It requested information from Mountbatten Windsor on details of his association with Epstein, who killed himself in a New York prison cell in 2019. Andrew has always categorically denied any misconduct.

Substance of the Request

“It has been documented that your friendship with Mr Epstein started in 1999 and that you remained close through and after his 2008 guilty verdict for soliciting minors for prostitution,” the letter said.

It stated further: “It has also been reported that you went with Epstein to his New York residence, the Queen’s estate at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s personal island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been accused of harming minors. This strong bond with Mr Epstein, combined with the recently revealed 2011 digital communication in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further supports our suspicion that you may have important details about the crimes committed by Mr Epstein and his co-conspirators.”

A notification regarding the letter said it was co-signed by 13 other Democrats on the committee and requests a response by 20 November.

Earlier Statements and Assistance

The letter arrives a week after another Democrat on the committee told: “Andrew should be summoned to testify before the oversight committee. The citizens has the right to know who was harming women and minors alongside Epstein.”

However, the congressman does not hold the authority to compel the duke and Congress itself cannot oblige evidence from a overseas individual.

In 2020, US authorities said that Mountbatten Windsor did not reply to US requests for an meeting. 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 check on his previous pledge that he was “prepared to help any appropriate law enforcement agency”.

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

Appeals for Accountability

The lawmaker said in a announcement that “wealthy and influential men have escaped justice for far too long. Now, ex- Prince Andrew has the opportunity to come clean and deliver accountability for the survivors. The committee will not stop advocating for accountability and openness for victims of Epstein and his network of accomplices.”

Another signatory, a Virginia Democrat, said that after listening to evidence to the committee from Epstein’s victims, as well as news accounts of leaked documents, “it is crucial that Andrew assists with the current inquiry. If he is not guilty, then he can prove his innocence.”

The lawmaker stated further: “And if not, our investigation will reveal that, and the affected individuals will receive belated justice. The monarchy’s actions taking away Andrew of his styles indicate there is more to this case.”

The letter came on the same day the British king formally stripped Mountbatten Windsor of his HRH style. Charles III formally made the adjustment – which had been announced a week ago – by issuing a “royal decree” which the royal office made public in the Gazette, the UK’s public registry.