Today (November 20) was the set deadline for Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor to respond to a request for questioning by the United States Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
Following the revocation of his titles, a US committee probing into Jeffrey Epstein asked the former prince to participate in their inquiry.
Throughout, the former prince has denied all allegations levied against him.
The investigation by the committee is focused on Epstein’s ‘sex-trafficking operations’ and financial documents have mentioned a ‘massage for Andrew’.
A letter addressed to Andrew, signed by 16 congressional members, stated: “The committee is seeking to uncover the identities of Mr Epstein’s co-conspirators and enablers, and to understand the full extent of his criminal operations. Well-documented allegations against you, along with your long-standing friendship with Mr Epstein, indicate that you may possess knowledge of his activities relevant to our investigation.
“In the interest of justice for the victims of Jeffrey Epstein, we request that you co-operate with the committee’s investigation by sitting for a transcribed interview with the committee.”
The deadline to respond was set for today.
It seems that Andrew has not replied to the committee’s request. Since he is not a US citizen, he faces no legal penalties for not responding and is not obligated to comply.
While Congress has extensive subpoena powers to compel American citizens to testify, the situation is different for Andrew.
Even if Andrew were to travel to the US, as a foreign citizen, he couldn’t be legally forced to testify.
If Andrew ever decides to cooperate with the American investigations, doing so would be entirely voluntary.
Melissa Hamilton, a professor of law and criminal justice at the University of Surrey, suggests it is unlikely Andrew will ever appear before Congress.
She stated in The i Paper earlier this month: “Mountbatten Windsor is unlikely ever to face the US Congress. He has nothing to gain and much to lose. Yet his absence no longer protects him. In the eyes of the public, silence itself has become an admission of sorts.”
Additionally, Suhas Subramanyam, a Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, accused Andrew of ‘hiding’ and remarked that the former senior Royal Family member ‘will continue to try to hide from people doing meaningful investigations of this matter’.
Subramanyam told The Guardian regarding their investigation: “It seems like every time we find more evidence, Prince Andrew seems to be in the documents.
“And so I think if he is hoping that the story will just go away by ignoring us and being silent, he will be sorely disappointed, as we continue to pursue this over the next year and beyond.”