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A American legislative body looking into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has sent a letter to Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, previously Britain’s Prince Andrew, asking that he undergo a deposition as part of its probe into Epstein’s wrongdoings.

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

The formal request to answer questions follows a week after Mountbatten Windsor was relieved of his royal title and agreed to vacate his property in Windsor.

Files and Claims

Mountbatten Windsor’s name appears in records and aviation records secured from Epstein’s estate and publicly released by the committee. He has also been charged by one of Epstein’s accusers, the late Virginia Giuffre, of abuse.

“The oversight committee will investigate accusations of abuse by Mountbatten Windsor, and will request data on Epstein’s network, associates, and connections based on the men’s long-term and thoroughly recorded friendship,” the committee said in a statement.

It demanded information from Mountbatten Windsor on details of his relationship with Epstein, who took his own life in a New York detention facility in 2019. Andrew has repeatedly categorically denied any impropriety.

Substance of the Communication

“It has been documented that your friendship with Mr Epstein commenced in 1999 and that you remained close through and after his 2008 sentencing for procuring minors for commercial sex acts,” the letter said.

It stated further: “It has also been claimed that you traveled with Epstein to his New York residence, the Queen’s residence at Balmoral, and to Mr Epstein’s secluded island in the US Virgin Islands, where you have been accused of harming underage individuals. This intimate friendship with Mr Epstein, combined with the freshly uncovered 2011 electronic correspondence in which you wrote to him ‘we are in this together’, further confirms our belief that you may have key insights about the wrongdoings committed by Mr Epstein and his accomplices.”

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

Earlier Remarks and Collaboration

The letter follows a week after another Democrat on the committee commented: “Andrew should be asked to appear before the oversight committee. The public deserves to know who was harming women and young girls alongside Epstein.”

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

In 2020, US authorities said that Mountbatten Windsor failed to respond to US requests for an discussion. The then US attorney for the southern district of New York said that prosecutors and the FBI had contacted Andrew’s legal team to inquire on his public commitment that he was “prepared to help any appropriate law enforcement agency”.

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

Demands for Transparency

The representative said in a announcement that “wealthy and well-connected men have avoided justice for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the opportunity to come clean and deliver accountability for the survivors. We will not cease fighting for accountability and transparency for those affected of Epstein and his network of co-conspirators.”

Another supporter, a Virginia Democrat, said that after listening to evidence to the committee from Epstein’s victims, as well as media coverage of leaked documents, “it is essential that Andrew cooperates with the active inquiry. If he is innocent, then he can prove his innocence.”

The lawmaker stated further: “And if not, our probe will show that, and the survivors will receive long overdue redress. The monarchy’s actions stripping Andrew of his styles suggest there is further to this situation.”

The letter was sent on the same day the British king publicly stripped Mountbatten Windsor of his HRH style. Charles III formally made the adjustment – which had been revealed a week ago – by issuing a “official document” which the monarch’s office made public in the Gazette, the UK’s official public record.