House moves to hold Leon Black in contempt of Congress over Epstein interview

The House swiftly approved a motion to hold billionaire investor Leon Black in contempt of Congress after he failed to appear for a deposition on his ties to late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, passing the referral to the Justice Department through unanimous consent.

The House Oversight Committee unanimously agreed to hold Black in contempt of Congress on Tuesday night, and Chair James Comer’s (R-Ky.) move to forward the measure through unanimous consent on the House floor Wednesday was not objected to, though the matter did not receive a formal vote before all members.

“No one is above the law. Leon Black defied two subpoenas, and the U.S. House of Representatives acted swiftly to find him in contempt of Congress. We will continue to seek transparency for the American people and justice for survivors in our investigation of the federal government’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell criminal cases,” Comer said in a statement after the measure passed.

Lawmakers have sought to question Black, who co-founded Apollo Global Management, about payments he made to Epstein — totaling millions over a number of years. The investor says he had no knowledge of the late financier’s abuse, asserting the payments only went toward business matters like tax and estate planning .

Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.), the top Democrat on the panel, saw contempt as a step to gaining insight into the financial entanglements between the two men.

“This vote is an important step towards justice and accountability. Leon Black has continued to defy two congressional subpoenas and we need to know why he gave Jeffrey Epstein $180 million dollars. We will continue to center the survivors in our fight to hold those responsible for these horrific crimes. We are just getting started,” Garcia said.

A contempt resolution acts as a referral to the Justice Department, which determines whether or not to bring charges.

Black walked out of a voluntary interview with the panel about the Epstein investigation two months ago, and he sued the committee earlier this month on the day he was commanded to appear for a deposition.

His lawsuit argues the committee lacks legal authority to enforce the subpoenas and that they improperly seek private information.

“Additionally, the subpoenas would also expose women who value their privacy, who have no known or public connection to Epstein, who bargained for confidentiality and have refused to release it, and who have no ability to protect themselves and their privacy before the Committee,” the complaint states.

Black’s attorneys on Wednesday accused Comer and the committee of rushing ahead to recommend charges.

“This an outrageous action that ignores the facts and the truth about Mr. Black. The House of Representatives has rushed through every stage of this inquiry,” attorneys Susan Estrich and Aaron Cutler said in a statement.

They continued, “First, the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and Chairman Comer rushed to issue him subpoenas. Then, the Committee rushed to hold him in contempt, even in the face of active litigation and an ethics complaint. Now, the full House is holding him in contempt without any regard to the active litigation challenging the lawfulness of the Committee’s actions and the ethics complaint against Chairman Comer.”

“Mr. Black has repeatedly said that he feels terrible for Epstein’s victims and that he regrets ever doing business with Epstein. He 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.”