House holds billionaire Leon Black in contempt of Congress over Epstein
investigation
[September 17, 2026]
By LISA MASCARO
WASHINGTON (AP) — The House approved a resolution Wednesday holding
billionaire Leon Black in contempt of Congress, referring the matter to
the Department of Justice after he defied the Oversight Committee's
subpoenas in its investigation into disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.
The action was swift, and without a formal vote, and now leaves it to
the Justice Department to decide whether to seek criminal prosecution.
Black has refused to respond to the subpoenas' requests to appear and to
turn over any potential nondisclosure agreements involving the
investigation into Epstein.
Republicans and Democrats from the Oversight Committee joined in a
bipartisan effort to advance the resolution forward.
“No one is above the law,” Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., the Oversight
Committee chairman, said in a statement. "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.”
California Rep. Robert Garcia, the panel's top Democrat, called the vote
“an important step towards justice and accountability.”
Black's lawyers have denounced the Oversight Committee's pursuit of the
former head of a private equity firm as an abuse of congressional power.
They said he "had no knowledge of any of Epstein’s heinous conduct.”
“The Committee has continued to insist on looking for information that
does not exist,” attorneys Susan Estrich and Aaron Cutler said in a
statement.
They called the action “politically motivated” and have sued the
committee and asked the Office of Congressional Conduct to open a probe
into Comer's tactics.
“This an outrageous action that ignores the facts and the truth about
Mr. Black," they said.
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Leon Black, a billionaire who was close with Jeffrey Epstein,
arrives for a closed-door interview with the House Oversight
Committee at the Capitol in Washington, June 26, 2026. (AP Photo/J.
Scott Applewhite, File)
Epstein investigation churns in Congress
Black is the latest among several prominent figures, including Bill
Clinton and Bill Gates, who have been asked to appear as part of the
Oversight Committee's long-running probe of Epstein. Survivors of
Epstein’s alleged sexual abuse have told personal stories of being
young women in a trafficking enterprise organized by Epstein and his
colleague Maxwell.
In June, Black did appear for a voluntary interview at the
committee. Lawmakers said later that he refused to answer their
questions about the nondisclosure agreements.
The committee issued two subpoenas seeking to compel Black to
produce the NDAs and to appear for a deposition July 16. The
committee said it had accommodated Black’s request to delay the
deposition to Sept. 3, but he refused to appear.
On Tuesday the Oversight Committee voted unanimously to approve the
contempt recommendation, sending it to the full House.
Black co-founded the private equity firm Apollo Global Management
and stepped down in 2021 during the fallout over his ties to
Epstein.
Lawmakers have alleged that Black paid Epstein $180 million during
their yearslong relationship.
A 2021 review commissioned by Apollo found that Black paid Epstein
$158 million from 2012 to 2017, after Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008
to soliciting prostitution from a minor. The review said the
payments were for “bona fide tax, estate planning and other related
services.”
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