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A Democratic Party congressman has demanded the former prince Andrew Mountbatten Windsor to testify before the US House of Representatives investigative panel that is currently conducting an investigation into the official handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case.

Bipartisan Demands for Evidence

The declaration from Ro Khanna, a California Democratic representative who is a member of the investigative House oversight committee, follows a British trade official, Chris Bryant, suggested that since the former prince has been stripped of his royal status, he should answer demands for information about his dealings with Epstein, an accused sex trafficker who died by suicide while in government custody six years ago.

“Just as with any regular citizen, if there were requests from another jurisdiction of this kind, I would anticipate any decently minded person to honor that request,” the minister said.

Khanna commented: “Andrew should be called to testify before the investigative committee. The public deserves to know who was exploiting women and minors alongside Epstein.”

Political Landscape and Probe Developments

GOP members control the majority in the House of Representatives, but following public pressure over former President Trump’s management of the Epstein case authorized an investigation by the House committee into how the government handled his prosecutions. Interest in the case surged in July, after the justice department revealed that a widely speculated list of Epstein’s sex trafficking clients did not exist, and it would provide no additional information on the case.

The House investigation has thus far resulted in the publication of thousands of documents – including a lewd drawing reportedly drawn by Donald Trump for Epstein’s 50th birthday – as well as sworn statements from ex-government leaders.

Legal Actions and Obstacles

As a minority party member, the representative lacks the authority to subpoena Mountbatten Windsor’s testimony. Representatives for the Republican committee chairman, James Comer, declined to comment about whether he thinks the ex-royal should be questioned.

The Democrat and Thomas Massie have introduced a bill to mandate the disclosure of files related to Epstein, but Mike Johnson, a top ally of the president, has blocked a vote on it. The two congressmen have circulated a discharge petition that will force a vote on the bill, if 218 members of the House sign it.

“This is what my campaign with Representative Massie has been about: transparency and accountability for the survivors who have been bravely sharing their stories,” the lawmaker said.

The petition has been signed by all 213 House Democrats, as well as four GOP members. The 218th signature is anticipated to come from Representative-elect Grijalva, who was elected in the state of Arizona last month, and awaits swearing in by the Speaker. However, the speaker has declined to act until the House reconvenes, and says he will not tell representatives to return to Washington until the Senate passes a measure to resolve the federal shutdown.