House Of Representatives Moves To Hold Leon Black In Contempt

(MENAFN- USA Art News) The US House of Representatives has voted unanimously to recommend that billionaire financier and art collector Leon Black be held in criminal contempt of Congress, as reported by the New York Times. This contempt charge stems from Black's interactions with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, to whom Black paid $158 million for financial advice between 2012 and 2017.

The House Oversight Committee, which also unanimously recommended the contempt charge to the full House, issued a subpoena to Black in June. Black met with the committee for a closed-door interview on June 26. However, he has not yet submitted to a deposition and, according to the Times,“refused to answer questions about nondisclosure agreements that he had signed with women, some of whom had been linked to Mr. Epstein.” The Washington Post further noted that Black exited the interview when the NDAs were brought up. He has also failed to provide documents requested by the committee, including any signed NDAs.

Earlier this month, Black initiated a lawsuit against the committee to block the subpoenas. The suit, currently pending in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., asserts that the subpoenas are“invalid” and“exceed” the committee's delegated authority by seeking private information without a legitimate connection to its legislative purpose, according to CNBC.

Black has, in turn, called for an investigation into Comer, stating that the representative's“actions and his statements continue to prove that he is no longer interested in finding the truth about Epstein,” the Post reported. While the House did not officially record the vote, this contempt finding serves as a recommendation for the Justice Department to pursue federal charges against Black. A Justice Department spokesperson told MS NOW that the“US Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia will review the referral of Mr. Black carefully and will not hesitate to pursue additional cases where the evidence supports.”

Black's attorneys, Susan Estrich and Aaron Cutler, told the Times in a statement that the contempt charge is“politically motivated and completely retaliatory.” Estrich described it as a“complete abomination” in the Post. Black is a renowned art collector, known for acquiring works for millions, including $106 million for a Picasso sculpture, $50 million each for two Raphael drawings, and nearly $120 million for Edvard Munch's famous pastel, The Scream.

Black first encountered Epstein in 1996 and subsequently appointed him as a trustee for Black's family foundation. Beyond the direct payments, Epstein also managed trusts involved in Black's art transactions, including the $25 million sale of a Giacometti sculpture and the $30 million purchase of a Cézanne painting, as detailed in William D. Cohan's recently published book, Money to Burn. Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 to charges of solicitation of prostitution and solicitation of prostitution with a minor, serving under 13 months of an 18-month sentence. Black has consistently denied any knowledge of Epstein's sexual abuse of minors and young women, which spanned decades and is now well-documented. Epstein was charged with sex trafficking of minors in 2019, which is when his connections to Black became publicly known. Epstein died in federal custody in 2019, with his death ruled a suicide.

In 2021, Black departed Apollo Global Management, the asset management firm he founded and served as chief executive. That same year, a 22-page report by Andrew Levander, which Black characterized as“totally exonerating” and clearing him of wrongdoing, was released, detailing his relationship with Epstein. In the aftermath, he chose not to seek reelection as chairman of the board of trustees for the Museum of Modern Art in New York, though he maintains his position as a board member today.

We previously reported:

Billionaire collector Leon Black has sued the House Oversight Committee, calling subpoenas for his testimony in the Jeffrey Epstein investigation“invalid.”

Source: ARTnews

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