Democrats urge Andrew to testify after new 'catch-up' emails with Epstein resurface
WASHINGTON, DC: Pressure is growing on Britain’s former prince, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, to testify about his alleged ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Several Democratic lawmakers investigating Epstein’s network are calling on Andrew to testify before the House Oversight Committee, days after King Charles formally stripped his younger brother of his royal title.
Rep Suhas Subramanyam told BBC on Saturday, November 1, that if Andrew “wants to do right by the victims, he will come forward,” emphasizing that the former prince’s name had reportedly appeared “many times” in survivors’ accounts.
Fresh Epstein emails deepen scrutiny
Newly unsealed court documents released on Friday revealed fresh correspondence between Andrew and Epstein, showing that the royal allegedly maintained contact with the financier even after his conviction.
Fellow committee members, including Reps Raja Krishnamoorthi, Stephen Lynch, and Ro Khanna echoed similar demands, urging Andrew to “tell us what you know” and to appear before Congress voluntarily.
So far, reportedly, no Republicans on the committee have publicly joined the call, and no subpoena has been issued.
In April 2010, less than a year after Epstein’s release from prison, Andrew suggested a “catch-up” meeting, writing that it would be “good to catch up in person.”
Epstein was released in July 2009 after being jailed for soliciting a minor.
The financier had reportedly proposed introducing Andrew to banker Jes Staley in London, but Andrew responded that he would be abroad and might “drop by” New York later that year.
By December 2010, the Andrew and Epstein were photographed walking together in New York’s Central Park, an encounter Andrew later claimed was meant to end their friendship.
Andrew’s royal downfall and renewed scrutiny
On February 28, 2011, one day after the image showing him with his arm around Giuffre, and Ghislaine Maxwell standing nearby, became public, Andrew allegedly wrote to Epstein in an email, "I’m just as concerned for you! Don’t worry about me!"
"It would seem we are in this together and will have to rise above it. Otherwise keep in close touch and we’ll play some more soon!" he added.
The publication of these emails comes amid escalating fallout for Andrew.
About two weeks after announcing that he would stop using his duke of york title, King Charles formally revoked both his princely status and his longtime residence at the 30-room Royal Lodge estate.
The pressure on Andrew has intensified following the posthumous release of Epstein survivor Virginia Giuffre’s memoir, 'Nobody's Girl', which recounts her allegations that Andrew had sex with her on multiple occasions when she was 17.
Andrew settled Giuffre’s civil lawsuit in 2022 for an undisclosed sum but reportedly continues to deny ever meeting her or the authenticity of a photograph showing them together.
As Andrew’s reputation faces renewed damage, his nephew, Prince William, is set to travel to Brazil next week for an awards ceremony for his environmental prize.
This effort is allegedly being seen by royal observers as an attempt to shift public focus away from one of the monarchy’s most damaging scandals in decades.
