Leon Black
The private-equity giant’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein was made public years ago, eventually leading to his
departure from his position as chairman of the Museum of Modern Art. But
Leon Black is still facing scrutiny for his connections to Epstein. On July 25, the Senate Finance Committee announced it would
investigate the Apollo Global Management co-founder’s dealings with Epstein. The probe will look into the
$158 million that Black paid Epstein over the years for tax and estate-planning advice — a nine-figure sum to a man who did not graduate college. Four days earlier, on July 21, Black also agreed to pay
$62.5 million to the U.S. Virgin Islands in a settlement that would clear him from any allegations made during the territory’s investigation into Epstein’s alleged sex-trafficking ring on Little St. James.
Black could also be
back in civil court for his Epstein connections. On July 26, an anonymous woman with Down syndrome and autism sued Black in New York for allegedly raping her when she was 16. The alleged assault took place in 2002 at Epstein’s Manhattan mansion — after which Epstein refused to take her to see a doctor, leaving her in the care of
Ghislaine Maxwell. Black’s lawyer has
called the allegations “frivolous and sanctionable.”
One of the dealings Black had with Epstein, the
New York Times reports, was when, in 2016, Epstein helped Black avoid taxes when Black sold a $25 million Alberto Giacometti sculpture and used the proceeds to buy $30 million Cezanne painting.