US commerce secretary details 'off-putting' interaction with Epstein in testimony

A congressional panel investigating late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has released transcriptions of interviews with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Ted Waitt, the billionaire co-founder of Gateway computers.

Lutnick discussed having three interactions with Epstein - a neighbour of his in New York - which included a visit to the financier's home next door and a trip to his island in the Caribbean after he was thought to have cut ties with Epstein.

Waitt testified about his years-long relationship with Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein's convicted co-conspirator, and his concerns about her working for him.

Neither Lutnick nor Waitt have been accused of any wrongdoing by Epstein's victims.

Lutnick appeared voluntarily on 6 May as part of the House Oversight Committee probe.

He said he and his wife were invited to Epstein's New York home in 2005 but they left abruptly when he showed them his massage table and made a remark about the kinds of massages he enjoyed.

Lutnick said he found the comment "off-putting", and so he and his wife excused themselves and he told his wife after that he did not want to interact with Epstein.

The commerce secretary had previously told Congress he cut ties with Epstein in 2005 after the incident.

But earlier this year, he confirmed visiting Epstein's island while on a family vacation in the Caribbean in 2012. Details about the visit were included in millions of documents released by the US justice department related to their investigations into Epstein.

The revelation that Lutnick visited Epstein's island long after he asserted that he had cut off contact led to bipartisan calls for the commerce secretary to resign from the Trump administration.

During the interview last week, Lutnick said he was contacted by Epstein's staff, who somehow knew he would be vacationing with his family near to the island Epstein owned.

Lutnick, his wife and children, another couple and their children, plus staff, took up the invitation for lunch. They dined outdoors on the island, the commerce secretary said, and never went inside.

"We sat outside, had lunch. It was boring. We left," Lutnick told the committee.

The committee also on Wednesday released the transcript from its 30 April interview with Waitt.

He told the committee about his relationship with Epstein's co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell, which he said began in 2004 and lasted till 2010.

He denied witnessing any nefarious conduct and said he had very limited interactions with Epstein.

Waitt told the committee that he didn't know much about Maxwell's work for Epstein.

Waitt was dating Maxwell when Epstein pleaded guilty in Florida to prostitution of a minor. Maxwell was subpoenaed to testify and Waitt said they discussed the legal case and she denied any involvement with it.

He said they never shared a home together, as he lived in California and she primarily lived in New York.

Waitt denied any knowledge of Maxwell or Epstein abuse claims and said he wasn't aware of anytime that Maxwell went to Epstein's private island during their relationship.

Maxwell wasn't publicly considered a co-conspirator to Epstein until after their relationship ended. Waitt noted he wasn't aware of any of the allegations concerning her until she was charged in 2020 - about 10 years after their relationship ended.

Waitt was also questioned about documents released by the US justice department that named him, including one that alleged he had knowledge of Maxwell soliciting women for Epstein and emails between him and Maxwell, where Maxwell talked about funding for a trip for three 18-year-olds and another discussing scheduling a massage for him. He denied any knowledge of the scheme.

He told the panel that the emails may have been about the children of friends of theirs and said he routinely got massages from licensed therapists - including some that were scheduled by Maxwell - due to an injury. He said he never remembered ever getting one from someone who appeared underage.