Prosecutors hit out at Andrew over Epstein probe
UNITED States prosecutors accused Britain’s Prince Andrew on Monday of evading their efforts to question him over his contacts with the late financier Jeffrey Epstein, but lawyers for the prince accused them of seeking publicity rather than his help.
US investigators want to interview Andrew, Queen Elizabeth’s second son, about his ties with Epstein — who was awaiting trial on charges of trafficking minors when he died last August in a New York City federal jail — as part of their inquiry into possible co-conspirators.
US Attorney Geoffrey Berman said
Andrew had “sought to falsely portray himself to the public as eager and willing to cooperate” but had given no interview to federal authorities and had repeatedly declined such requests.
Berman was responding to a report by Britain’s Sun newspaper that US authorities investigating Epstein’s life and death had sent the British government a formal request, known as a mutual legal assistance treaty submission, asking for access to the prince.
If the MLAT request is granted, US prosecutors could ask for Andrew to voluntarily attend an interview to give a statement or potentially force him to attend a court to provide evidence under oath.
Britain’s Home Office said it did not comment on the existence of any MLAT requests. “If Prince Andrew is, in fact, serious about cooperating with the ongoing federal investigation, our doors remain open, and we await word of when we should expect him,” Berman’s office said in a statement.
Earlier on Monday, Andrew’s lawyers said in a statement following the Sun article that the prince, whose official title is the Duke of York, had offered his help to the US Department of Justice three times this year.
“Unfortunately, the DOJ has reacted ... by breaching their own confidentiality rules and claiming that the Duke has offered zero cooperation,” Andrew’s lawyers Blackfords said in a statement.
“In doing so, they are perhaps seeking publicity rather than accepting the assistance proffered,” they said.
US Attorney General William Barr said on Monday there were no plans to extradite Andrew.
(Reuters)