Billionaire Bill Gates testified before a US Congressional committee that he never had a personal relationship with Jeffrey Epstein and that he broke all ties with him when he could not fulfill his commitment to raise funds for the Microsoft founder's philanthropic initiatives.

Gates appeared voluntarily in Washington at a closed-door hearing before the House Oversight Committee investigating the Epstein case.

In the meeting with lawmakers, Gates reportedly named influential people Epstein contacted for funds.

He also referred to his own marital infidelities, saying that Epstein was aware of them and tried to use them to pressure him.

“He was not successful in that endeavor,” Gates said, “but it illustrates some of the techniques he used to exploit his interactions with me for his own benefit.”

Committee members said the testimony shows that Epstein was a “collector of friends” and that he associated with people like Gates to “project power and influence.”

In his initial statement, Gates assured that he never witnessed sustained criminal behavior by Epstein nor had he any indication of it.

"I never went to his island, his ranch or his house in Florida. I have never victimized anyone," he stressed.

“Although he may have tried to foster a personal relationship, I was never interested in it and never reciprocated.”

He also said he hopes “the victims of Epstein's crimes can get the justice they deserve.”

Thousands of mentions

Gates joins former President Bill Clinton, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and other powerful figures who have been questioned by the bipartisan commission.

In 2019, Epstein committed suicide in a cell while awaiting trial, while his ex-partner Ghislaine Maxwell is serving a 20-year prison sentence.

She appeared virtually before the commission in February but invoked her right to refuse to answer questions.

When the Department of Justice (DOJ) released millions of pages of documents related to the Epstein criminal investigation in January, Gates' name was mentioned thousands of times and appeared in several photos alongside the convicted sex offender.

However, Gates has denied any wrongdoing, as well as having any knowledge of Epstein's illicit activities.

Beginning his statement Wednesday, Gates echoed an interview from earlier this year in which he acknowledged that he acted with poor judgment when meeting Epstein and that he is “one of the many people he regrets having met.”

“Russian girls”

A photo released by the DOJ appears to show Gates near an aircraft in the presence of Epstein's pilot. Gates said he traveled with Epstein on a private jet.

Other documents include draft emails attributed to Epstein, which contain unverified and controversial claims about Gates' personal life.

These include allegations that Epstein facilitated “illicit trysts” with “married women” for Gates and that the billionaire contracted a sexually transmitted infection from “Russian girls,” Epstein said.

He also said he helped “Bill get medication” to treat the disease.

Another email alleged that Gates attempted to “sneakily” give his then-wife Melinda antibiotics to protect her from the same infection.

Gates denies these allegations, but admitted to having affairs with two Russian women.

“Epstein was trying to use information about my infidelities, along with many lies he added, to pressure me to collaborate with him again,” Gates said in his opening statement.

"Dead end"

The relationship between the two began in 2011, three years after Epstein was convicted in Florida of two counts of inciting prostitution, and intensified as they discussed possible fundraising for Gates' global health initiative, the billionaire told the committee.

Gates said he made it clear from the beginning that Epstein would never play any role in his foundation's work or receive any compensation.

In a statement to the press about Wednesday's hearing, the committee's Democratic leader, Robert Garcia, said: "Gates was aware that Jeffrey Epstein could be convicted of a heinous crime and continued to interact with him to seek funds for his foundation."

Gates told the commission that in 2014, after Epstein gathered a group he described as potential donors, he realized that “our previous conversations, which should have resulted in significant philanthropic support, were a dead end.”

He added that it was clear that no one in the group was interested in moving forward.

“At that point, I came to the conclusion that Epstein would never keep his promises,” he explained. “I told him we were not moving forward and stopped communicating or meeting with him.”

Evasive answers

Democrats on the committee claimed that Gates provided the names of people Epstein had met, but they did not make them public.

One of the committee's Republican members, Tim Burchett, noted that the questions were “very intense” and that Gates had been evasive in his answers.

"However, it's pretty clear to me that Epstein was a collector of friends. He just liked to surround himself with important people, take pictures with them and hang out with them, and I think that's how he attracted them," Burchett said.

He also told reporters that Gates seemed “dejected for a guy worth several billion.”

Garcia and other Democrats on the committee said Gates had discussed drafts of Epstein's emails and insisted that he had never introduced women, girls or minors to him.

“Some of their responses show us that many of the men who interacted with Jeffrey Epstein only saw what they wanted to see in their interactions,” said Democrat Emily Randall.

Gates told his foundation staff in February that he was aware of an “18-month affair” that had limited Epstein's travels, but that he did not adequately investigate his background.

Lawmakers questioned Gates about how plausible it was that he, as one of the titans in the information sphere, was unaware of the details of Epstein's background, including facts that were already in the public domain.

With additional reporting from Chief North America Correspondent Gary O'Donoghue.