{"id":18173,"date":"2026-06-26T16:33:10","date_gmt":"2026-06-26T16:33:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=18173"},"modified":"2026-06-26T16:33:10","modified_gmt":"2026-06-26T16:33:10","slug":"billionaire-leon-black-defends-158m-paid-to-epstein-i-knew-jekyll-i-didnt-know-hyde","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=18173","title":{"rendered":"Billionaire Leon Black defends $158M paid to Epstein: \u2018I knew Jekyll. I didn\u2019t know Hyde\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

By JOEY CAPPELLETTI<\/strong><\/p>\n

WASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 Billionaire investor Leon Black said Friday that Jeffrey Epstein deceived him during a yearslong relationship in which he paid the disgraced financier $158 million, but insisted he committed no criminal wrongdoing as he appeared before the House Oversight Committee.<\/p>\n

Read more What\u2019s killing seabirds along California\u2019s coast? \u2018Just one damn thing after another\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

Black is the 16th person to appear before the committee as part of their broader investigation into the web of wealth and influence around Epstein. Before entering the closed-door deposition, Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., the House committee chairman, told reporters he believed it might be the most \u201cgroundbreaking\u201d yet.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis could be a pretty significant deposition as we try to get answers,\u201d said Comer.<\/p>\n

Black is the co-founder and former chief executive of the private equity firm Apollo Global Management. He stepped down in 2021 amid fallout over his ties to Epstein.<\/p>\n

Black maintained Friday that he was not aware of Epstein\u2019s \u201cnefarious activity\u201d until 2019 and that he paid Epstein for legitimate purposes, in part due to his \u201cunrivaled network of relationships\u201d with influential figures.<\/p>\n

\u201cI knew Jekyll. I didn\u2019t know Hyde,\u201d said Black.<\/p>\n

Black was featured prominently in the Epstein files<\/h4>\n

Black is mentioned repeatedly in files that the Department of Justice has released related to the Epstein investigation. He also appears in a collection of birthday messages sent to Epstein that were released by the House committee last year, including a poem attributed to him that refers to \u201cBlond, Red or Brunette, spread out geographically.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

A 2021 review commissioned by Apollo found that Black paid Epstein $158 million from 2012 to 2017, after Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 to soliciting prostitution from a minor. The review said the payments were for \u201cbona fide tax, estate planning and other related services.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI gave Epstein a second chance, as did many others. I wish I had not,\u201d Black said.<\/p>\n

Epstein was indicted in July 2019 on federal charges of sex trafficking of minors and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of minors. The Justice Department alleged that Epstein created a vast network of girls, some as young as 14, for him to sexually abuse between 2002 and 2005. He died by suicide in a New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial.<\/p>\n

The House committee chairman, Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., said earlier this year that Epstein\u2019s former accountant, Richard Kahn, told lawmakers in his testimony that Epstein received significant sums of money from a number of high-profile individuals, including Black.<\/p>\n

Read more 988\u2019s LGBTQ+ hotline to relaunch this year. But the group that helped start it might be excluded<\/a><\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., this month from a nearly four-year investigation into Black to the House committee. In a statement, Wyden said, \u201cEpstein even appears to have acted as a middleman for Black to pay women on Black\u2019s behalf.\u201d<\/p>\n

Black broadly denied the allegations in his opening statement, calling them \u201crank speculation.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI have never abused a woman. I have never been with an underage woman. I have never engaged in sex trafficking. I have never paid Epstein for access to women. I was never blackmailed by Epstein.\u201d<\/p>\n

Many high-profile figures have been summoned to testify about Epstein<\/h4>\n

Other figures to have appeared for the investigation include former Democratic President Bill Clinton, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, former Attorney General Pam Bondi and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates.<\/p>\n

Gates testified earlier this month and said he had made a \u201cgrave error in judgment\u201d by meeting with Epstein.<\/p>\n

Black said Epstein\u2019s network included SpaceX founder Elon Musk, Google co-founder Sergey Brin and Peter Thiel, the co-founder of PayPal and Palantir.<\/p>\n

Democrats on the House committee have pushed Republicans to seek testimony from President Donald Trump, a Republican who had his own yearslong relationship with Epstein. Republicans have refused, saying they have not come across any evidence that Trump did anything wrong during his well-documented friendship with Epstein.<\/p>\n

Comer has said he has been in touch with the Justice Department about acting Attorney General Todd Blanche coming in for questioning soon.<\/p>\n

Bondi, in her testimony, stressed that Blanche had overseen the chaotic release of the federal Epstein files, which included the unintentional release of victim information.<\/p>\n

Read more What\u2019s next for Katie Porter after California governor loss?<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

House lawmakers are questioning billionaire investor Leon Black as part of their investigation into Jeffrey Epstein and the powerful people around him.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":18172,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[43,2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18173","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-based-on-facts-either-observed-and-verified-directly-by-the-reporter-or-reported-and-verified-from-knowledgeable-sources","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nBillionaire Leon Black defends $158M paid to Epstein: \u2018I knew Jekyll. I didn\u2019t know Hyde\u2019 - Silicon Valley Moving Post<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=18173\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Billionaire Leon Black defends $158M paid to Epstein: \u2018I knew Jekyll. I didn\u2019t know Hyde\u2019 - Silicon Valley Moving Post\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"House lawmakers are questioning billionaire investor Leon Black as part of their investigation into Jeffrey Epstein and the powerful people around him.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=18173\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Silicon Valley Moving Post\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-26T16:33:10+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/?p=18173#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/?p=18173\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/636e2e5a10a21cf87fe6eb5951e8a6b7\"},\"headline\":\"Billionaire Leon Black defends $158M paid to Epstein: \u2018I knew Jekyll. I didn\u2019t know Hyde\u2019\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-26T16:33:10+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/?p=18173\"},\"wordCount\":728,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/?p=18173#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/1fd305c18e20ab89adf470ed6d9cd148.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.\",\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/?p=18173#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/?p=18173\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/?p=18173\",\"name\":\"Billionaire Leon Black defends $158M paid to Epstein: \u2018I knew Jekyll. I didn\u2019t know Hyde\u2019 - Silicon Valley Moving Post\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/?p=18173#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/?p=18173#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/1fd305c18e20ab89adf470ed6d9cd148.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-26T16:33:10+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/636e2e5a10a21cf87fe6eb5951e8a6b7\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/?p=18173#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/?p=18173\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/?p=18173#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/1fd305c18e20ab89adf470ed6d9cd148.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/1fd305c18e20ab89adf470ed6d9cd148.webp\",\"width\":1024,\"height\":682},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/?p=18173#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Billionaire Leon Black defends $158M paid to Epstein: \u2018I knew Jekyll. I didn\u2019t know Hyde\u2019\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Silicon Valley Moving Post\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/636e2e5a10a21cf87fe6eb5951e8a6b7\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Billionaire Leon Black defends $158M paid to Epstein: \u2018I knew Jekyll. I didn\u2019t know Hyde\u2019 - Silicon Valley Moving Post","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=18173","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Billionaire Leon Black defends $158M paid to Epstein: \u2018I knew Jekyll. I didn\u2019t know Hyde\u2019 - Silicon Valley Moving Post","og_description":"House lawmakers are questioning billionaire investor Leon Black as part of their investigation into Jeffrey Epstein and the powerful people around him.","og_url":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=18173","og_site_name":"Silicon Valley Moving Post","article_published_time":"2026-06-26T16:33:10+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=18173#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=18173"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/#\/schema\/person\/636e2e5a10a21cf87fe6eb5951e8a6b7"},"headline":"Billionaire Leon Black defends $158M paid to Epstein: \u2018I knew Jekyll. I didn\u2019t know Hyde\u2019","datePublished":"2026-06-26T16:33:10+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=18173"},"wordCount":728,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=18173#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1fd305c18e20ab89adf470ed6d9cd148.webp","articleSection":["Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.","News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=18173#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=18173","url":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=18173","name":"Billionaire Leon Black defends $158M paid to Epstein: \u2018I knew Jekyll. I didn\u2019t know Hyde\u2019 - Silicon Valley Moving Post","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=18173#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=18173#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1fd305c18e20ab89adf470ed6d9cd148.webp","datePublished":"2026-06-26T16:33:10+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/#\/schema\/person\/636e2e5a10a21cf87fe6eb5951e8a6b7"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=18173#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=18173"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=18173#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1fd305c18e20ab89adf470ed6d9cd148.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1fd305c18e20ab89adf470ed6d9cd148.webp","width":1024,"height":682},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=18173#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Billionaire Leon Black defends $158M paid to Epstein: \u2018I knew Jekyll. I didn\u2019t know Hyde\u2019"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/","name":"Silicon Valley Moving Post","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/#\/schema\/person\/636e2e5a10a21cf87fe6eb5951e8a6b7","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com"],"url":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18173","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=18173"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18173\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/18172"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=18173"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=18173"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=18173"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}