(MENAFN) According to a report by the Wall Street Journal on Sunday, it was revealed that Jeffrey Epstein, the late financier and convicted sex offender, had discovered an alleged affair between Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and a Russian bridge player named Mila Antonova. The report suggests that Epstein had paid for Antonova's education at a software coding school and later sought reimbursement from Gates in exchange for his silence.

The supposed affair between Gates and Antonova is said to have taken place around 2010 when Gates was in his mid-50s, while Antonova was in her 20s. Epstein reportedly became acquainted with Antonova three years later and took it upon himself to cover the costs of her tuition. In 2017, Epstein allegedly emailed Gates, requesting reimbursement for the expenses incurred, as per "people familiar with the matter" cited by the newspaper.

The timing of the email correspondence is noteworthy, as it coincided with Epstein's unsuccessful attempts to persuade Gates to invest in a large-scale charitable fund alongside JPMorgan Chase. The Wall Street Journal suggests that the underlying implication behind the message was that Epstein could expose the alleged affair if Gates did not maintain their association.

A spokeswoman for Bill Gates confirmed the exchange and acknowledged that Epstein had tried to exploit a previous relationship as a means of pressuring Gates. However, she did not comment on the specifics of the alleged affair or the financial arrangements involving Antonova's education.

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