Leon Black Declines Questions on NDAs at Epstein Hearing
Billionaire Leon Black refused to answer questions about NDAs before Congress, telling lawmakers he knew a different side of Jeffrey Epstein.
Billionaire private equity mogul Leon Black refused Tuesday to answer questions about non-disclosure agreements during a high-profile congressional hearing on Jeffrey Epstein, according to Rep. James Comer, who chairs the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. The refusal marked a tense moment in what has become one of Capitol Hill's most closely watched investigations into the late financier's network of wealthy associates.
In a prepared statement delivered to the committee, Black offered a stark defense of his past relationship with Epstein, invoking the literary metaphor of Robert Louis Stevenson's dual-natured character: "I knew Jekyll. I didn't know Hyde." The statement suggests Black is framing his association with Epstein as a relationship built on a deliberately concealed deception, distancing himself from any knowledge of the disgraced financier's criminal conduct.
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Black, the co-founder of Apollo Global Management, has faced mounting scrutiny over the extent and nature of his ties to Epstein. His appearance before the House Oversight panel reflects Congress's intensifying effort to compel testimony from prominent figures who had financial or personal dealings with Epstein before his 2019 death in federal custody.
The decision to refuse answers on NDA-related questions is likely to fuel further congressional pressure, as lawmakers have made transparency around potential hush agreements a central focus of the broader Epstein inquiry. Whether Black faces any formal consequences for declining to respond remains an open question that legal analysts are watching closely.
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