NEW YORK (AP) — An independent review commissioned by the Gates Foundation has revealed that Bill Gates and foundation employees held more than two dozen meetings with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein — even as staff members raised alarms about the damage such an association could cause to the organization’s reputation.
The approximately 30 meetings took place between 2011 and 2014 and centered primarily on two topics: a proposed public health investment fund that was never established, and a grant to the International Peace Institute, which was led by one of Epstein’s associates.
Several of those meetings occurred at Epstein’s Manhattan townhouse, with one taking place on the Gates Foundation’s own campus, according to the review conducted by law firm WilmerHale. The foundation released a three-page summary of WilmerHale’s findings on Tuesday and did not indicate whether the full report would be made public. Investigators found no evidence that the foundation made any payments to Epstein or engaged in any illegal conduct.
Gates, who chairs the foundation, has not been accused of any involvement in Epstein’s crimes and has consistently denied any knowledge of Epstein’s abuse of girls. He told a congressional committee last month that meeting with the disgraced financier was a “grave error in judgment.”
Gates’ name appears in documents released by the Justice Department as part of its Epstein investigation. Those files include the names of prominent figures from technology, finance, politics, and business — all of whom have denied any participation in Epstein’s criminal conduct.
Epstein was federally indicted in July 2019 on charges of sex trafficking minors and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking. He died by suicide while awaiting trial.
The summary’s release comes one week after it was reported that Warren Buffett — a longtime friend of Gates who has directed the bulk of his charitable giving to the Gates Foundation — left the foundation out of his annual donations this year. Buffett explained that the decision had more to do with his confidence in his three children’s readiness to manage his estate than with Gates’ “distasteful” connection to Epstein.
According to the review, that connection began when an adviser shared by both the foundation and Gates’ personal office introduced the two men. At the time of that introduction, Epstein had already pleaded guilty three years earlier to soliciting prostitution from a minor.
Epstein pitched the idea of a charitable investment fund that would pool donations from wealthy individuals to support global public health initiatives. At Gates’ direction, foundation staff followed up with Epstein on legal considerations and potential tax advantages for donors.
Those conversations ultimately led to a December 2014 breakfast at Epstein’s Manhattan home, attended by Gates, foundation staff, and prospective donors. Gates later concluded that Epstein had “misrepresented” the donors’ willingness to contribute, and the foundation abandoned the concept.
Epstein also served as a connection between Gates and the leader of a nonprofit that later received foundation funding. In 2012, the review found, Epstein introduced Gates to Terje Rød-Larsen, who was then serving as president of the International Peace Institute. The following year, the Gates Foundation entered into a grant agreement with the International Peace Institute related to polio eradication efforts. Rød-Larsen stepped down in 2020 due to his ties to Epstein.
Throughout all of these interactions, the review determined, Gates was aware of Epstein’s sex offense conviction and had heard concerns from staff about the risks of continuing to work with him on the charitable fund project.
Gates Foundation CEO Mark Suzman said the organization’s board has approved new measures to improve vetting procedures and risk management going forward.
“The work we do depends on integrity and earning and maintaining the trust of partners,” Suzman said in a press release. The foundation declined to offer any additional comment.
WilmerHale noted that its five-month review did not include access to Gates’ personal communications and did not cover Epstein’s interactions with Gates outside of his role with the foundation.
