The House voted Wednesday to hold billionaire Leon Black in contempt of Congress for his refusal to comply with the Oversight Committee’s subpoenas in its investigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
It referred the matter to the Justice Department, but it is not yet clear whether the DOJ would prosecute him. If prosecuted and convicted of criminal contempt of Congress, he would face imprisonment for up to a year and a fine of up to $100,000.
“This vote is an important step towards justice and accountability,” Rep. Robert Garcia of California, top Democrat on the committee, said in a statement. “Leon Black has continued to defy two congressional subpoenas and we need to know why he gave Jeffrey Epstein $180 million. We will continue to center the survivors in our fight to hold those responsible for these horrific crimes. We are just getting started.”
The vote, by unanimous consent, comes on the heels of the Oversight Committee passing a resolution 41-0 recommending Mr. Black be held in contempt.
Mr. Black, the former Apollo Global Management CEO, ignored congressional subpoenas. His legal team said the committee overstepped its authority to engage in a “fishing expedition” and that Mr. Black “had no knowledge of any of Epstein’s heinous conduct.”
His attorneys called the contempt resolution “retaliation — plain and simple.”
Instead of appearing for a deposition, Mr. Black sued the committee and its chair, GOP Rep. James Comer of Kentucky, to block the subpoenas.
His lawyers said that demanding copies of nondisclosure agreements violated the privacy of private individuals who had no known connection to disgraced financier Epstein and lacked any legitimate legislative purpose. They said the investigation shifted from Epstein to an effort to bully and destroy Mr. Black.
They also said 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.”
While Mr. Black initially sat for a voluntary, closed-door interview with the panel in June, it ended early after he refused to answer questions regarding his use of NDAs, prompting lawmakers to issue subpoenas for documents and a compelled deposition.
Mr. Black denied involvement in sex trafficking, abuse or blackmail, stating he regrets ever dealing with Epstein.
His financial ties to the late financier have drawn scrutiny.
Mr. Black paid approximately $158 million to entities associated with Epstein over a multi-year period. He has maintained that these payments were strictly for legitimate tax, estate planning and financial advisory services, and that Epstein deceived him.
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