Bill Gates admitted to having two affairs with Russian women while apologizing for his ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
“It was a huge mistake to spend time with Epstein,” Gates, 70, said in a Gates Foundation company town hall, per a recording obtained by The Wall Street Journal. “I apologize to other people who are drawn into this because of the mistake that I made.”
Gates addressed his staff in the meeting on Tuesday, February 24, claiming that he never did or saw anything “illicit” while spending time with late billionaire sex trafficker Epstein.
“To be clear, I never spent any time with victims, the women around him,” Gates added.
A Gates Foundation spokesperson told The Wall Street Journal that the founder holds town hall meetings with his staff members twice a year. On Tuesday, Gates “spoke candidly, addressing several questions in detail, and took responsibility for his actions,” per the statement.
Gates’ comments came after the United States Justice Department released another batch of Epstein Files late last month. One unsent email alleged that Gates had sexual relations with two “Russian girls” and got a sexually transmitted infection.
“I did have affairs, one with a Russian bridge player who met me at bridge events, and one with a Russian nuclear physicist who I met through business activities,” Gates admitted on Tuesday, without addressing the STI claims.
Gates explained that he first met Epstein — who died by suidice at age 66 in August 2019 — in 2011.
“Knowing what I know now makes it, you know, a hundred times worse in terms of not only his crimes in the past, but now it’s clear there was ongoing bad behavior,” Gates said on Tuesday.
The tech giant also gave credit to ex-wife Melinda French Gates, who “was always kind of skeptical” about Epstein. (French Gates, 61, addressed her ex-husband’s connection to Epstein during a podcast episode released earlier this month.)
Gates also told his staff that the last time he had contact with Epstein was in 2014. “After that, he continued to email me,” Gates added.
Gates previously addressed his connection to Epstein earlier this month, saying that he regrets having any type of relationship with the disgraced financier.
“Apparently, Jeffrey wrote an email to himself. That email was never sent,” Gates told 9 News Australia on February 4. “The email is false. I don’t know what his thinking was there. Was he trying to attack me in some way?”
He added, “Every minute I spent with him, I regret, and I apologize that I did that.”
Gates did not directly address the specific claims in Epstein’s alleged email at the time.
“I never went to the island, I never met any women,” Gates added. “And so, the more that comes out, the more clear it’ll be that, although the time was a mistake, it had nothing to do with that kind of behavior.”
