Howard Lutnick faces congressional showdown after Epstein files revealed island visit - BERITAJA

Over the years, the households of New York financier Jeffrey Epstein and billionaire businessman Howard Lutnick, now the U.S. Commerce Department secretary, overlapped successful seemingly accepted ways, for illustration the request for a bully painter. Another time, Epstein received the resume for Lutnick’s nanny.

They were, aft all, next-door neighbors for much than a decade successful an elite Upper East Side enclave of Manhattan.

But their lives besides intersected successful acold much influential aliases individual ways, specified arsenic erstwhile successful 2012 Lutnick, his woman and their 4 young children sailed connected a yacht to person luncheon pinch Epstein connected his private Caribbean island. Or 7 months later, erstwhile an adjutant to then-Prince Andrew wanted Epstein’s sentiment about Lutnick, past the CEO of the Wall Street brokerage and finance slope Cantor Fitzgerald.

“What is your position connected Howard Lutnick? Just met him pinch PA,” wrote the aide, referring to Andrew, who was angling to do business pinch Cantor Fitzgerald.

“My neighbour smart,” Epstein replied.

The narration betwixt Lutnick and Epstein spans years some earlier and aft Epstein was convicted successful 2008 for soliciting a insignificant for adultery successful Florida. Their email communications, which were sporadic, are included successful the millions of pages of Epstein investigation documents released by the Justice Department this year.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick successful the Oval Office connected March 31, 2026.Aaron Schwartz / Bloomberg via Getty Images file

The files show Lutnick reaching retired to Epstein arsenic early arsenic 2009 and contacting him arsenic precocious arsenic 2018. Their interactions weren’t robust, but they remained successful touch, including done telephone calls and kindness galas.

Lutnick has denied immoderate wrongdoing. He has not been accused of immoderate impropriety tied to Epstein.

But he has offered shifting accounts about their relationship, initially saying successful caller years that he had nary relation pinch Epstein. Lutnick said he had trim ties pinch his neighbour successful 2005 because he believed he was a “disgusting person.” Then, aft the Justice Department files were released, he acknowledged visiting Epstein’s island.

The grade of Lutnick’s individual relation pinch Epstein, who died by suicide successful a New York City jailhouse successful 2019 while awaiting national activity trafficking charges, will beryllium the attraction Wednesday of a Capitol Hill inquiry.

Lutnick voluntarily agreed to look earlier the House Committee connected Oversight and Government Reform, said Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., the committee’s chairman, making him the latest to attest earlier the bipartisan sheet investigating the national government’s handling of the lawsuit against Epstein.

Lutnick, who near Cantor Fitzgerald past twelvemonth aft Trump named him commerce secretary, is among astatine slightest a half-dozen apical officials successful the Trump administration, including the president himself, whose names look successful the files. Trump, who has not been accused of immoderate crime successful relationship pinch Epstein and denies immoderate wrongdoing, has acknowledged being friends pinch him earlier they had a falling retired about 2 decades ago, years earlier Epstein became a convicted activity offender.

Some legislature Democrats person accused Lutnick of lying and called connected him to resign aliases beryllium fired. His quality successful the files has besides prompted students astatine Haverford College, Lutnick’s alma mater successful Pennsylvania, to demand his sanction beryllium stripped from the backstage wide creation school’s library.

Neither the Commerce Department nor the White House responded to requests for remark about Lutnick’s pending testimony, but Lutnick told Axios successful March: “I person done thing incorrect and I want to group the grounds straight.”

A White House spokesperson besides defended Lutnick earlier this year, saying, “President Trump has assembled the champion and about transformative Cabinet successful modern history.”

Comer’s agency did not instantly respond to a petition for comment.

An inconsistent timeline

Lutnick will about surely look questions complete his credibility, said Matt Dallek, a historiographer and governmental guidance professor astatine George Washington University.

“It’s risky business for him to spell earlier Congress and attest about Epstein,” Dallek said. “Because lo and behold, he visited the land pinch his kids.”

Trump, he added, will want to cognize really Lutnick performs.

“If Lutnick comes disconnected arsenic wishy-washy aliases ineffective, Trump could sour connected him,” Dallek said. “Especially if he wants a autumn feline for the economy.”

Lutnick has many times denied mingling pinch Epstein.

In a 2024 Forbes profile, Lutnick’s spokesperson told the mag he “never had immoderate relation pinch Mr. Epstein.” And successful a podcast interview successful October, Lutnick described visiting Epstein’s townhouse pinch his wife, Allison, successful 2005 and seeing a massage array successful the mediate of a room filled pinch candles. Lutnick said Epstein told him he received massages “every day” and sewage “weirdly close” to opportunity “the correct benignant of massage.”

“In the six to 8 steps it takes to get from his location to my house,” Lutnick said, “my woman and I decided that I will ne'er beryllium successful the room pinch that disgusting personification ever again.”

“I was ne'er successful the room pinch him socially, for business, aliases moreover philanthropy,” he added. “If that feline was there, I wasn’t going, because he’s gross.”

He besides said successful the podcast question and reply that Epstein was the “greatest blackmailer ever.”

House Democrats person said they want to cognize why Lutnick believed that, particularly aft the Justice Department wrote successful a memo past July that location was “no reliable grounds recovered that Epstein blackmailed salient individuals.”

In letters and astatine a Senate fund hearing past month, Democrats person many times asked Lutnick about his narration pinch Epstein, including why successful 2013 Epstein’s accountant emailed: “Attached is resume of Lutnick nanny,” and said arrangements were being made “for you to meet her.”

Lutnick dodged senators’ questions astatine the hearing, saying he would “answer them all” erstwhile he appeared earlier the House Oversight committee.

A decade of contact

The files outline Lutnick’s occasional email interaction pinch Epstein complete about a decade.

Emails look successful 2009, the twelvemonth aft Epstein’s conviction. Epstein received a connection saying, “Lutnick would for illustration to speak to you.”

Two years later, they were arranging telephone calls. One evening, Epstein scheduled Lutnick for “drinks” earlier dinners pinch head Woody Allen and manner designer Vera Wang, according to his emails. The adjacent day, Epstein suggested successful an email that Lutnick forgot his phone.

In December 2012, Epstein was scheduled to be a bosom crab kindness meal astatine a ample edifice ballroom successful which the Lutnicks were among the arena co-chairs. And 2 days earlier Christmas, the Lutnicks and their children, on pinch different family pinch young kids, planned to sojourn Epstein’s location successful the U.S. Virgin Islands, the emails show. The time aft the visit, Epstein’s adjunct wrote to Lutnick, “Jeffrey wished maine to walk on the beneath to you: Nice seeing you.”

When asked about the land sojourn during a Senate Appropriations subcommittee proceeding successful February, Lutnick said location was thing “untoward” about the relationship but said he did not callback why his family agreed to go.

The files besides show communal financial interests.

A fewer days aft the visit, some men were among the signatories connected a banal acquisition agreement successful AdFin, a integer advertizing exertion company.

The adjacent year, the imaginable woody betwixt then-Prince Andrew and Cantor Fitzgerald began brewing. Andrew’s aide, David Stern, wanted Epstein’s advice.

Epstein called Lutnick “smart,” but he warned Stern that Andrew “will extremity up successful the news” because of his engagement pinch Lutnick, who astatine the clip had a sportsbook and gambling exertion institution taxable to audits and financial disclosures. “Don’t do it,” Epstein wrote, informing successful different email that Andrew “will person beatified hellhole to pay” because of Lutnick’s gaming affiliation.

The pursuing month, Epstein advised Stern connected what the position of an statement betwixt Andrew and Cantor Fitzgerald should look like, according to the emails. But erstwhile Stern asked Epstein 2 months later if he had seen the proposal, Epstein replied successful 1 word: “Goofy.”

It’s unclear what yet came of it, but a Cantor Fitzgerald spokesperson said successful a connection that the patient “has ne'er had immoderate business dealings pinch Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.” (Last year, King Charles removed Andrew’s royal titles amid a increasing ungraded complete the erstwhile prince’s known ties to Epstein.)

In the pursuing years, Epstein received 3 invitations to events involving Lutnick.

In precocious 2017, Epstein donated $50,000 to a Jewish philanthropic statement that was hosting a Wall Street use meal honoring Lutnick, the emails show. Epstein did not attend, but wrote “tell Lutnick he could fill” the table.

Their past email connection appears to beryllium from the outpouring of 2018 — complete what was a pressing rumor successful their neighborhood.

“Are you alert arsenic to them building to artifact our parkland views. What should we do about it? Time is of the essence,” Lutnick wrote successful a connection sent to Epstein’s assistant.

The adjacent Frick Collection creation depository was gearing up for an description , threatening their coveted views of Central Park. Lutnick urged Epstein to constitute a missive to the city. In a later email, Epstein changed the subject: “On different statement what do you deliberation the prospects for adfin are?” He was referencing the tech institution whose banal they purchased successful 2012.

Lutnick responded: “Producing gross finally. This is their year. Next 12 months they request to go economically aforesaid sufficient.”

AdFin would shutter successful October 2019, 3 months aft Epstein’s 2nd apprehension and his decease successful jail.