‘A huge mistake’: Bill Gates downplayed his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein, but the emails tell a darker story

The Justice Department recently released emails and notes written by Jeffrey Epstein in July 2013. These documents suggest that Bill Gates, the billionaire Microsoft co-founder, engaged in extramarital affairs. The papers offer a detailed look at their relationship that completely contradicts Gates’s earlier claims about knowing Epstein.

A representative for the Gates Foundation strongly denied these accusations. They called the messages “absolutely absurd and completely false.” They also described Epstein as a “proven, disgruntled liar.” The foundation’s spokesperson said these documents only prove Epstein was upset that he didn’t have an ongoing relationship with Gates. 

According to The New York Times, they claim the notes show “the lengths he would go to entrap and defame.” Epstein wrote these messages shortly after his business deal with Gates completely failed. He had hoped to arrange a major partnership between the Gates Foundation and JPMorgan Chase, which would have given him a large income boost.

Epstein’s failed business deal may have sparked the accusations

When that deal fell through, Epstein apparently decided to write down his complaints. It’s still unknown whether Epstein actually sent these emails to Gates or just kept them as personal notes. Epstein’s notes contain very serious accusations. 

In one email, he wrote that he had arranged affairs for Gates with married women. He even claimed he had helped Gates get drugs “in order to deal with consequences of sex with Russian girls.” If true, these claims paint a very different picture from Gates’s previous description of their interactions as just “talking about philanthropy.”

The disgraced financier clearly felt betrayed. In another email, Epstein accused Gates of choosing to “disregard and discard our friendship developed” over six years. He claimed Gates had abandoned him just to protect his own reputation. The convicted sex offender had a long history of evading justice through systemic failures before his eventual arrest.

This contradicts how Gates discussed the relationship in 2021. In an interview, Gates called his interactions with Epstein “a huge mistake.” He had always tried to minimize the connection, saying he only had several dinners with Epstein to try getting donations for the Gates Foundation.

However, the timeline raises questions. Gates’s relationship with Epstein began around 2011, which was after Epstein had already been convicted of soliciting prostitution from a minor. The fact this relationship started after the conviction is concerning. 

Epstein’s relationship with Gates also played a role in Gates’s divorce. Gates’s former wife, Melinda French Gates, sought a divorce partly because of her husband’s connection to the convicted sex offender. Experts analyzing surveillance footage found evidence of cover-up in the case.