Washington [US], February 26: Billionaire Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft, admitted to having an extramarital affair and called meeting pedophile Jeffrey Epstein a "big mistake." However, he insisted he was not involved in Epstein's crimes.
According to The Wall Street Journal , at a meeting held on February 24th at the Gates Foundation, Bill Gates apologized to his charity staff for the repercussions arising from his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. He acknowledged two extramarital affairs but emphasized that he did not participate in any of Epstein's illegal activities - Epstein was convicted of pimping underage girls.
In the audio recording obtained by the newspaper, Bill Gates said he "apologizes to those who were caught up in the story for my mistake." He also admitted to spending time meeting with Epstein and even bringing some leaders of the Gates Foundation to the meetings, which he acknowledged was a wrong decision.
The relationship between the two has recently been brought back to light after the US Department of Justice released additional documents related to Epstein. These included emails written by Epstein himself, accusing Gates of having a sexually transmitted disease and trying to conceal it from his ex-wife. Gates has denied this information.
The documents also included photos of Gates with several women (whose faces were blurred). At the meeting, he stated that Epstein himself had suggested taking these photos with his assistant. "Let me be clear, I never spent time with the victims or the women around him," Gates asserted.
However, the billionaire admitted that the relationship with Epstein was completely "contrary to the foundation's values and goals." He argued that reputation is vital to the global philanthropic activities the foundation pursues, as partners may choose to cooperate or not based on their trust in the organization.
A spokesperson for the foundation said that Bill Gates holds meetings at the Gates Foundation twice a year, and at the recent meeting, he spoke frankly, answered questions in detail, and took responsibility for his personal actions.
Gates said he began meeting Epstein in 2011, after Epstein had pleaded guilty in 2008 and received a controversial sentence. He said he knew about the "18-month agreement" restricting Epstein's travel, but admitted the assessment at the time was imprudent.
Additionally, Gates also confirmed having had romantic relationships with a Russian female athlete and a Russian nuclear physicist he met through work. Previously, in 2023, The Wall Street Journal reported that Epstein had tried to pressure Bill Gates regarding his relationship with athlete Mila Antonova after failing to persuade him to join a multi-billion dollar charity fund.
According to Bill Gates, Epstein often spoke of close relationships with many billionaires, particularly in Wall Street finance, and claimed he could help fund global health initiatives. The presence of influential figures at these meetings at the time made him "feel like it was normal," which he now recognizes as a misjudgment.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper
