The House Oversight Committee issued two subpoenas to billionaire investor Leon Black on Friday after he refused to answer questions about nondisclosure agreements during a voluntary transcribed interview about his relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Black, the co-founder of Apollo Global Management, arrived on Capitol Hill to testify voluntarily before the panel investigating Epstein's connections to the wealthy and powerful. However, within the first hour of the closed-door interview, he and his lawyer insisted he could not discuss the terms and contents of certain nondisclosure agreements.
Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) said he issued two subpoenas to Black on the spot. The first requires Black to appear for a formal deposition on July 16, during which his testimony will be videotaped and under oath. The second requires him to produce the nondisclosure agreements to the committee.
Lawmakers Seek Answers on NDAs
'This is a result of refusing to answer specific questions about the NDAs, and the terms. We believe that information is vital to our investigation,' Comer told reporters Friday. 'We want to know, was Jeffrey Epstein involved in the NDAs? Was he involved in writing? Was he involved in awarding funds to the women for the NDAs? What was the reason for the NDA? We want to know everything about the NDAs.'
The committee's ranking member, Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.), described Black in a press release as 'storming out' of the interview. 'Leon Black had a chance to do the right thing and help us bring justice to the survivors. Instead, he ran out of the room when he was pressed for information about his non-disclosure agreements with women and his relationship with survivors of Jeffrey Epstein,' Garcia said.
Bipartisan Frustration Over Lack of Cooperation
Several Democrats who attended the interview expressed frustration with Black's lack of cooperation. Rep. Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.) told reporters that more than one of Epstein's accusers had previously accused Black of committing sexual misconduct against them. Rep. Suhas Subramanyam (D-Va.) alleged that Black 'gush[ed] poetically about how smart and how great Jeffrey Epstein was' and accused him of walking out on the committee.
'We know some of the stuff that's publicly out there about him having mistresses, about him having these NDAs, about people being afraid of him, but we want him to answer the tough questions about what he knew about Jeffrey Epstein, his relationship, and whether he was involved in some of the crimes himself,' Subramanyam said.
Black's Defense and Opening Statement
In his opening statement, Black said he first met Epstein in the 1990s and began paying him for wealth management advice in 2013. He said he feels 'terrible for Epstein's victims' and that he did not know about Epstein's criminal activity until the financier was charged with trafficking in July 2019. 'I knew Jekyll. I didn't know Hyde,' Black said in his opening statement.
Black, who left Apollo Global Management in 2021 amid scrutiny over his Epstein ties, has denied wrongdoing. His name appears hundreds of times in the Epstein files, and he paid Epstein $158 million for 'tax and estate work.' He also paid $62.5 million to the U.S. Virgin Islands to avoid Epstein-related claims against him.
Attorney Responds to Subpoenas
Black's attorney, Susan Estrich, decried the subpoenas as 'a planned political stunt.' 'Mr. Epstein had no involvement with any NDA's, whether they exist or not. Let me reiterate, the Committee did not ask a single question about the legitimate payments to Epstein for professional services on tax and estate matters,' Estrich said.
She added that Black 'never abused a woman. He never was with an underage woman. He never engaged in sex trafficking. He never paid Epstein for access to women. He was never blackmailed by Epstein. Mr. Black had no knowledge of any of Epstein's heinous conduct.'
Background and Broader Investigation
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. The bipartisan desire to get more information from Black comes as the committee's Epstein investigation is set to hit the one-year mark in July, after Oversight Committee Democrats — frustrated with the Justice Department's refusal to release the so-called Epstein files — forced a bipartisan vote to facilitate the publication of relevant materials. That vote jumpstarted a congressional probe that has led to interviews with more witnesses.
