Overview
- On Friday, June 26, Leon Black voluntarily met with the House Oversight Committee, read prepared remarks denying any abuse or knowledge of Epstein’s trafficking and saying Epstein “duped” him financially.
- Committee chair Rep. James Comer issued a subpoena during the closed-door session after Black declined to answer questions about nondisclosure agreements with women tied to Epstein, requiring him to return for further testimony and to produce documents.
- An independent 2021 Dechert review commissioned by Apollo found Black paid Epstein about $158 million from 2012 to 2017 for tax and estate planning work, while Senate Finance materials and recent reporting cite as much as $170 million and have referred findings to the House.
- Documents released by the Justice Department and committee emails show Black’s name appears extensively in the Epstein files and include messages suggesting Epstein at times acted as a middleman to pay a woman, which lawmakers say makes bank records, contracts and NDAs critical evidence.
- The subpoenas mark an escalation in active congressional and Justice Department inquiries, and the records forced from Black could prompt more depositions, public transcripts and legal scrutiny that may affect survivors, pending civil suits and the wider probe into Epstein’s financial network.