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Bill Gates testified before the House Oversight Committee in a closed-door session as part of the panel's ongoing investigation into disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who died in a New York jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges involving underage girls. In prepared opening remarks released as the session began, Gates said Epstein had attempted to use knowledge of his extramarital affairs as leverage to pressure him into resuming contact.
"Epstein was working to use information about my infidelities, in addition to many lies that he layered on top, to pressure me to re-engage with him," Gates said. "He was unsuccessful in this effort, but it shows some of the ways he tried to leverage his interactions with me to further his agenda."
Gates, 70, told lawmakers he was introduced to Epstein in 2011 through trusted professional and philanthropic contacts after the financier claimed he could raise billions for global health causes.
He acknowledged accepting the introduction without adequate scrutiny, admitting he had been aware of Epstein's prior legal troubles but failed to grasp their full extent. Their substantive discussions ran from 2013 to 2014, but Gates said no charitable vehicle was ever established, no funds were raised, and he severed all contact in December of that year after concluding Epstein would never deliver on his promises.
"I never witnessed nor had any indication that Epstein was engaged in ongoing criminal conduct," Gates said. "I never went to his island, his ranch, or his Florida home. I have never victimized anyone."
He described the association as a failure of judgment driven by singular focus on philanthropic goals. "I was so focused on the possibility of raising funds for global health that I allowed that goal to override my better judgment," he said. "If the time I spent with Epstein lent him any credibility, I am deeply sorry."
Emerging from the session, Republican congressman Tim Burchett said Gates appeared well-coached and had offered little new information, while the committee's top Democrat, Robert Garcia, said Gates had shared details about others within Epstein's circle.
