Les Wexner says he was conned by Epstein; Democrats push back on testimony

Billionaire tells US legislators that Jeffrey Epstein stole ‘vast sums’ from him and denies knowledge of the financier’s crimes.

Retail tycoon Les Wexner has told lawmakers in the United States that he had been “duped” by the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and denied any knowledge of his former financial adviser’s abuse of girls and young women.

Wexner, a former CEO and founder of Victoria’s Secret owner L Brands, made the statement on Wednesday in written testimony to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, which is investigating Epstein and his ties to the US elite.

The Democrats on the panel had subpoenaed the 88-year-old billionaire after the latest release of Epstein-related documents by the Department of Justice (DOJ) revealed new details about his relationship with the well-connected financier.

Five committee members travelled to Wexner’s home in Ohio to take a deposition from him in a closed-door session. He was questioned for six hours, and a video and transcript are to be released soon.

In his written statement, Wexner described Epstein as a “conman” and said he had been “naive, foolish, and gullible to put any trust” in the convicted sex offender.

Wexner said he was introduced to Epstein in the mid-1980s and later hired him to manage his vast wealth acquired as the founder of L Brands, which also operated leading brands like The Limited, Express, Bath & Body Works, and Abercrombie & Fitch.

Wexner said he had “irrevocably cut ties” with Epstein after learning that “he was an abuser, a crook, and a liar” around 2007, a year after the late financier was first arrested for soliciting prostitution from a minor in the state of Florida.

Wexner said his wife, Abigail, had discovered that “Epstein had stolen vast sums from our family”, and following this revelation, he never spoke to his former adviser again.

“While others visited Epstein in jail and associated with him after his release, I did not. Nor did I witness, condone, or enable his crimes in any way,” the statement said.

Democrats unconvinced

Some Democratic lawmakers, however, pushed back on Wexner’s narrative, given their long-running professional relationship.

“There is no single person that was more involved in providing Jeffrey Epstein with the financial support to commit his crimes than Les Wexner,” Representative Robert Garcia, the committee’s ranking Democrat, told reporters outside Wexner’s home.

“We have also directly heard from survivors about Mr Wexner, his involvement, and their concerns about the enormous amount of money that was transferred over and paid to Mr Epstein. We know of over a billion dollars that was either transferred, provided in stocks, or given directly to Mr Epstein by Wexner,” he said.

Garcia noted that Wexner appeared to be “unaware” of much of the money given to Epstein and had downplayed their personal ties.

The pair were close enough that at one point Wexner gave Epstein power of attorney, according to the tycoon’s testimony. Wexner also admitted to visiting Epstein’s properties, like his private island, Little Saint James, albeit on one brief occasion while accompanied by his family.

Wexner also responded to allegations by the late victim Virginia Giuffre, who claimed in court documents that the billionaire was among the men Epstein trafficked her to. Wexner testified to utter devotion to his wife of 33 years, saying he had never once been unfaithful “in any way, shape, or form”.

Wexner, whose name appears more than 1,000 times in the Epstein files, was investigated by the FBI at least once, according to an email released by the DOJ.

The email indicates that in August 2019, the month that Epstein died while awaiting trial, the FBI was looking into Wexner as a potential “secondary coconspirator” in his crimes. The FBI said it had been in contact with Wexner’s lawyers, but there “was limited evidence regarding his involvement”.

Epstein’s death in 2019 in a Manhattan jail cell was ruled a suicide.

‘I feel sorry’

In one of the newly released documents, Epstein sent rough notes to himself about Wexner, saying, “never ever, did anything without informing Les” and “I would never give him up”.

Another document, an apparent draft letter to Wexner, said the two “had ‘gang stuff’ for over 15 years” and were mutually indebted to each other – as Wexner helped make Epstein rich and Epstein helped make Wexner richer.

A spokesperson for Wexner told The Associated Press news agency that Wexner never received the letter and characterised it as fitting “a pattern of untrue, outlandish, and delusional statements made by Epstein in desperate attempts to perpetuate his lies and justify his misconduct”.

Wexner did not publicly reveal until after Epstein’s arrest on federal sex trafficking charges in July 2019 that he had severed their relationship. While he said that happened in 2007, the Justice Department’s newly released records show the two were in touch after that.

Wexner emailed Epstein on June 26, 2008, after a plea deal was announced that would require him to serve 18 months in a Florida jail on a state charge of soliciting prostitution from a minor to avoid federal prosecution. He wound up serving 13 months.

“Abigail told me the result. All I can say is I feel sorry. You violated your own number 1 rule always be careful,” Wexner wrote.

Epstein replied, “no excuse”.

Wexner’s spokesperson told the AP the 2007 date Wexner cited applied to firing Epstein as financial adviser, revoking his power of attorney and removing his name from Wexner’s bank accounts.