Evasive Epstein associate hit with subpoenas mid-interview

House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer announced Friday that the panel will subpoena billionaire investor Leon Black as part of the Republican-led investigation into Jeffrey Epstein's financial network.

Lawmakers are seeking a deposition and related documents following a closed-door interview in which Black declined to answer questions about non-disclosure agreements tied to the late sex offender, and the subpoenas — one for testimony and one for information about the NDAs — came in the middle of his interview with the committee on Capitol Hill, reported CNN.

"The NDAs are between him and other women," Comer said. "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 NDA? What was the reason for the NDAs?"

Black did not respond to reporters' questions about whether he intends to comply. His attorney, Susan Estrich, dismissed the move as "nothing more than a planned political stunt," arguing the committee ignored legitimate business dealings between Black and Epstein involving tax and estate matters.

She reiterated Black's denials, stating he "never abused a woman," was never involved in sex trafficking, and had no knowledge of Epstein's crimes.

In his opening remarks to the committee, Black offered similar denials and said he regretted giving Epstein "a second chance" following his 2008 conviction for soliciting prostitution from a minor, which Black said Epstein described as an isolated incident tied to a fake ID.

"I did not know about this nefarious activity until Epstein was charged with trafficking in July 2019," Black's statement said.

Black's appearance marked the 16th closed-door interview in the committee's bipartisan Epstein investigation, which has intensified scrutiny of Epstein's wealthy associates following the Justice Department's release of millions of related files.

Black is notable among the witnesses interviewed so far in that he has personally been accused of abuse connected to Epstein. A CNN review of DOJ files found one woman told the FBI Black became "sexual" with her during a massage, while another told the FBI in 2020 that Black raped her years earlier.

The billionaire has also been named in three civil lawsuits alleging rape, all of which Black has denied — one was dismissed, another was dropped by the plaintiff and a third remains pending after the plaintiff's law firm withdrew.

Black addressed the allegations directly on Friday, calling them "baseless speculation" and "demonstrably false," and said the resulting scrutiny has led to death threats against him and his family, prompting him to hire a bodyguard for the first time.

The investor stepped down from running Apollo Global Management in 2021 amid scrutiny of his Epstein ties. An internal Apollo investigation found no wrongdoing but determined Black paid Epstein $158 million between 2012 and 2017.

To date, only Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell have faced federal sex trafficking charges connected to the case.