- News
- UK
- Home News
‘If he is hoping that the story will just go away by ignoring us and being silent, he will be sorely disappointed’, US representative warns
Harry CockburnFriday 21 November 2025 14:17 GMTComments
CloseDemonstrators protest outside Prince Andrew's Windsor home
Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world
Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email
Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email
Email*SIGN UPI would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has failed to respond to an official summons to testify before the United States government regarding his friendship with the late paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.
The former prince has been accused of “hiding” from US officials on the House Oversight Committee – one of the most powerful committees in US Congress – and which is responsible for investigations, monitoring and ensuring accountability across the federal government.
On 6 November, the committee requested that Mr Mountbatten-Windsor sit for a “transcribed interview” about his connections with Epstein, giving him a deadline of Thursday 20 November to respond.
However, according to reports, he has not replied.
Suhas Subramanyam, a Democrat who sits on the committee, said this week that the former duke “has been hiding from us, and I think he will continue to try to hide from people doing meaningful investigations of this matter”.
“It seems like every time we find more evidence, prince Andrew seems to be in the documents,” he added.
open image in galleryAndrew Mountbatten Windsor now has the status of a commoner (PA Wire)Mr Mountbatten-Windsor has faced mounting pressure from US lawmakers to answer questions over his well-documented friendship with Epstein. Some Democrats have previously suggested he could even speak over video link and with a lawyer present.
Though the committee is powerful, it does not have the authority to force testimony from individuals who are not US citizens and reside abroad, nor can it issue subpoenas compelling foreign nationals outside American jurisdiction. As a result, Mr Mountbatten-Windsor is under no legal requirement to cooperate.
It is unclear what US lawmakers may choose to do next now the former prince has not responded to their call. However, Mr Subramanyam suggested that just because the disgraced royal has failed to respond that the issue will not be dropped.
“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,” he warned.
In 2022, the former prince made an out-of-court settlement with Virginia Giuffre – an Epstein survivor who had accused him of sexual assault and rape – without admitting any wrongdoing. Giuffre died by suicide earlier this year.
Mr Mountbatten-Windsor has always maintained that the allegations are false, and has also previously resisted attempts by US prosecutors and Epstein’s victims’ lawyers to cooperate.
However, damaging recent newspaper allegations also include that he had tried to get the Metropolitan Police to dig up dirt for a smear campaign against Ms Giuffre.
open image in galleryThe then-Duke of York pictured with Virginia Giuffre and Ghislaine Maxwell (US Department of Justice/PA) (PA Media)The force previously said it was looking into the reports after The Mail On Sunday newspaper claimed he had passed Ms Giuffre’s date of birth and social security number to his taxpayer-funded bodyguard in 2011 and asked him to investigate.
According to The Telegraph, “sources close to him” have suggested Mr Mountbatten-Windsor is being singled out in a bid to take the heat off other high profile figures whose names are said to appear in the soon-to-be-released Epstein files.
Following US President Donald Trump’s signing of a bill to release the Epstein files, earlier this week, the entire cache of evidence accumulated during two investigations into Epstein is now legally required to be made public by the US government within 30 days.
While some of the evidence will be redacted due to issues including protecting victims’ identities and potentially compromising active criminal investigations, the bill also stipulates that “no record shall be withheld, delayed, or redacted based on embarrassment, reputational harm, or political sensitivity, including to any government official, public figure, or foreign dignitary.”
The Independent has contacted Mr Mountbatten-Windsor’s representatives for comment.
More about
Prince AndrewRoyal familyJeffrey EpsteinDonald TrumpJoin our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments
