The Washington Post - House Democrats request interview with former prince Andrew on Epstein

The top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, Rep. Robert Garcia (D-California), has requested that Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, King Charles III’s younger brother, appear before Congress for a transcribed interview about convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

The request comes amid the House Oversight Committee’s ongoing bipartisan investigation into Epstein. Andrew’s name appears in a number of documents the committee has subpoenaed, and subsequently released publicly, including flight logs. He was accused by one of Epstein’s victims of assault and was recently relieved of his titles, include “prince.” Andrew, who did not respond to a request for comment, denies any wrongdoing.

“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,” Garcia wrote in a letter to Andrew, sent Thursday. Thirteen other Democrats on the committee signed on to the letter, which requested Andrew respond by Nov. 20.

As the letter came only from the committee’s Democrats, Republican members, including Oversight Chairman James Comer (R-Kentucky), were not among the initial signatories. Garcia does not possess subpoena authority as the committee’s top Democrat. While Congress has strong subpoena powers, it cannot compel testimony from foreign nationals like Andrew, meaning the former prince could ignore the summons.

“Rather than assisting in the Oversight Committee’s legitimate investigation by joining the majority to enforce subpoenas issued to former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Democrat Ranking Member Garcia continues to chase headlines and material for his next TikTok video,” a spokesperson for the committee’s Republican majority said in a statement to The Washington Post. “Ranking Member Garcia does not speak for the Committee, and his letters carry no Committee authority.”

Democrats on the committee have taken unilateral action in the Epstein investigation before, including by releasing documents, like a drawing of a woman’s body signed “Donald” that was included in book of greetings complied for Epstein’s 50th birthday. President Donald Trump has denied that he wrote the message or that the signature on it is his.

Epstein and President Donald Trump were once friends, but Trump has said he ended the relationship. After Epstein was arrested again in 2019, Trump, then in his first term as president, said: “I had a falling-out with him a long time ago. I don’t think I’ve spoken to him for 15 years. I wasn’t a fan.”

“Rich and powerful men have evaded justice for far too long. Now, former Prince Andrew has the opportunity to come clean and provide justice for the survivors. Oversight Democrats will not stop fighting for accountability and transparency for survivors of Epstein and his gang of co-conspirators,” Garcia said in a statement.

Andrew, who is now a civilian, has faced years of damaging headlines over his ties to Epstein. Outrage boiled over following the recent publication of “Nobody’s Girl,” a posthumous memoir by Virginia Giuffre, who said she was trafficked by Epstein as teenager and forced to have sex with Andrew. Giuffre died by suicide earlier this year.

Within days of the memoir’s release, Charles stripped his younger brother Andrew of his “prince” title and evicted him from Royal Lodge, a sprawling royal residence near Windsor Castle where he had lived rent-free for two decades.

In her memoir, Giuffre writes that she and Andrew had sex on three occasions: at Ghislaine Maxwell’s house in London, where she said the infamous photograph was taken of Andrew with his arm around her bare waist; at Epstein’s townhouse in New York; and on Little Saint James, a private island in the Virgin Islands formerly owned by Epstein. In one passage, Giuffre quotes from a sworn declaration she gave in 2015 about their alleged encounter on the island.

“Epstein, Andy, and approximately eight other young girls, and I had sex together,” she said. “The other girls all seemed and appeared to be under the age of eighteen and didn’t really speak English. Epstein laughed about how they couldn’t really communicate, saying they are the easiest girls to get along with.”

In 2022, Andrew settled a civil lawsuit with Giuffre — for an undisclosed sum — but made no admission of liability. In a disastrous 2019 interview with BBC’s “Newsnight,” Andrew said that he had no recollection of meeting Giuffre and that “under the right circumstances” he would testify under oath.

“If push came to shove and the legal advice was to do so, then I would be duty bound to do so,” he said.

In that same interview, he spoke about his friendship with Epstein and the occasions they met in person, both before and after Epstein’s conviction for sex offenses. Andrew confirmed he had traveled to Epstein’s island and had flown on his private plane. He also acknowledged that Epstein and his girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell, had visited Andrew in the U.K. as guests at Windsor Castle and Sandringham. Andrew said he ended the friendship in December 2010, when he flew to New York and stayed at Epstein’s townhouse for several days.

Andrew told the BBC that he hadn’t had any contact with Epstein since then — an account that appeared to be contradicted by the Mail on Sunday, which recently published an email, reportedly from Andrew to Epstein in February 2011. Andrew allegedly wrote: “ … keep in close touch and we’ll play some more soon!!!!”

Andrew is expected to move soon to Sandringham, a royal residence owned privately by the British monarch. The fallout in the U.K. may not be finished. The London Metropolitan Police are investigating new claims that Andrew asked his police bodyguard to dig up dirt on Giuffre.

In the U.S., lawmakers remain under pressure to facilitate the release of documents that might provide more information on Epstein’s death and crimes. The Oversight Committee has subpoenaed the Justice Department for documents related to its investigation against Epstein; it has also subpoenaed documents from Epstein’s estate, and conducted interviews with people believed to be familiar with the sex offender.

Many of the documents received from the estate have been released in redacted form, including the birthday book, a version of Epstein’s last will and testament; the Sept. 24, 2007, non-prosecution agreement with the U.S. attorney’s office for the Southern District of Florida; and entries from Epstein’s address books and diary. Transcripts of interviews, including with Alexander Acosta, the former U.S. labor secretary who served as the top federal prosecutor in South Florida when Epstein received a widely criticized plea deal, and former U.S. Attorney General William P. Barr have been released as well.

The DOJ’s files have not yet been released, however, despite pressure from Democratic and Republican voters. In the House, a second bipartisan effort is underway to force the release of the federal government’s files.

Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Kentucky) and Ro Khanna (D-California) are attempting to trigger that release through a discharge petition process. If their petition reaches 218 signatures, that would force Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) to hold a floor vote on whether to compel a second vote mandating that the Justice Department release its Epstein-related files.

Johnson has come under criticism for refusing to swear in Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva (D-Arizona) while the House remains out of session during the government shutdown. Grijalva won a special election to succeed her father, the late Raúl Grijalva, on Sept. 23. She has promised to provide the petition’s 218th signature. Democrats have protested the delay.