Melinda French Gates says ex-husband Bill Gates has questions to answer over Epstein ties
By John Liu, CNN
(CNN) — Melinda French Gates said she was filled with “unbelievable sadness” when further documents detailing her ex-husband and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates’ ties with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein were released last week.
The philanthropist, who divorced Gates in 2021, opened up about her reaction to the controversy, saying she was “happy to be away from all the muck,” in a preview video of an appearance on NPR’s “Wild Card” podcast.
“Whatever questions remain there of what – I can’t even begin to know all of it – those questions are for those people and for even my ex-husband. They need to answer to those things, not me,” she said. The full interview will be released on Thursday, NPR said.
The long relationship between Bill Gates and Epstein is well documented, but new questions emerged about their dealings when more than 3 million pages of files related to the Epstein investigation were released by the Department of Justice last Friday.
It’s not clear who wrote what look to be draft messages from 2013 saved in Epstein’s email account. But they appear to document, in stream-of-consciousness style, feelings of betrayal aimed at the Microsoft co-founder. The drafts mention marital discord between Gates and his then-wife Melinda. There is discussion of business deals, the idea of Gates having concerns about a sexually transmitted disease, and soured business ventures.
Bill Gates has not been accused of any wrongdoing relating to Epstein.
A spokesperson for the software billionaire told NPR that the claims are “absolutely absurd and completely false. The only thing these documents demonstrate is Epstein’s frustration that he did not have an ongoing relationship with Gates and the lengths he would go to entrap and defame.”
French Gates said reading the new details brought back memories of “very, very painful times in my marriage.”
She told the podcast the situation the girls were put in by Epstein is “beyond heartbreaking” and “unimaginable.”
“I’m able to take my own sadness and look at those young girls and say, my God, how did that happen to those girls?” she said. “At least for me, I’ve been able to move on in life, and I hope there’s some justice for those now-women.”
Over the last few years, Gates has repeatedly expressed regret over his decision to spend time with Epstein. CNN has reached out to Gates Foundation for comment.
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