Bill Gates addressed the allegations made in the latest batch of Epstein files.
For context, Epstein wrote and addressed an email draft to himself in 2013. In it, the sex offender wrote that Bill had gotten an STI from “Russian girls” and was trying to get antibiotics from Epstein, which he could then give to Melinda without her knowledge. A spokesperson for Bill quickly called the allegations from a “proven, disgruntled liar…absolutely absurd and completely false.” Bill himself has previously said he only met with Epstein in the context of seeking support for his foundation and called it a “mistake.”
Gates’s ex-wife, Melinda French Gates, was asked about mentions of him in the files, to which she said, “For me, it’s personally hard whenever those details come up. Brings back memories of some very, very painful times in my marriage. But I have moved on from that. I purposely pushed it away, and I moved on.”
In a new interview with 9 News Australia, Gates was asked about what his relationship with Epstein was like. He replied, “I met Jeffrey in 2011. Over a period of three years, I had a number of dinners with him. The focus was always — he knew a lot of very rich people, and he was saying he could get them to give money to global health.”
“In retrospect, that was a dead end. I’ve said many times, but I’ll say again, I was foolish to spend time with him. I was one of the people who regret ever knowing him,” he continued.
When asked about the allegations specifically, Gates said, “Apparently, Jeffrey wrote an email to himself. That email was never sent. The email is false. I don’t know what his thinking was there. Was he trying to attack me in some way? It just reminds me, every minute I spent with him, I regret. I apologize that I did that.”
As for why Epstein would lie about such a thing in the first place, Gates replied, “It’s factually true that I was only at dinners. I never went to the island. I never met any women. The more that comes out, the more clear it will be that, although the time was a mistake, it had nothing to do with that kind of behavior.”
Gates further said that it was “not really” frustrating to be brought up in such a way, adding, “People should hold people who are successful to a really high bar.”
You can watch the full interview here.
