Bill Gates apologized to employees of the Gates Foundation regarding his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal (WSJ).
The outlet obtained a recording from Gates, which features him stating he did “nothing illicit,” and saw “nothing illicit” during his time with Epstein. “I did have affairs, one with a Russian bridge player who met me at bridge events, and one with a Russian nuclear physicist who I met through business activities,” he said.
“To be clear I never spent any time with victims, the women around him,” Gates said, as per the WSJ report. “It was a huge mistake to spend time with Epstein … I apologize to other people who are drawn into this because of the mistake that I made.”
Gates reportedly told employees that he spent time with Epstein in Germany, France, Washington, and New York, although he claimed he never visited the island or “stayed overnight.”
A 2023 report suggests that Gates met Russian bridge player Mila Antonova in 2010. The two are believed to have been introduced by former Gates confidant Boris Nikolic. Epstein eventually sponsored Antonova’s education at a software coding school, American Faith reported. When Epstein asked Gates for reimbursement in 2017, some interpreted it as a veiled threat to disclose the affair if Gates ended their relationship.
Epstein also reportedly referred Gates and others to JPMorgan Chase. Former Chase executive Jes Staley admitted under oath in 2023 that Epstein also connected David Gergen, former adviser to Presidents Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, and Bill Clinton, and businessman Thomas Pritzker, cousin of Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, to JPMorgan.
