Jeffrey Epstein once floated the idea of enlisting prestigious lawyer Kathryn Ruemmler to advocate on his behalf to Bill Gates’s now-ex-wife, newly unearthed emails revealed.
Epstein, the late financier and convicted sex offender, was told by a third party in 2017 that Gates, the billionaire Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist, “wants to talk to you but his wife won’t let him,” according to emails released by the Justice Department.
Epstein then suggested deploying Ruemmler — who at the time was working for Latham & Watkins between stints at the Obama White House and at Goldman Sachs, where she is today — to speak with Melinda Gates to give her “the other side of Jeffrey,” calling Ruemmler his “great defender.”
“Bill met my friend Kathy [R]uemmler, Obama counsel for 5 yrs. She would love to sit with Melinda and give her the other side of [J]effrey,” Epstein wrote a person whose name was redacted, adding: “she is an arch feminist who is my great defender.”
The emails were cited by CNN’s KFile.
A spokeswoman for Ruemmler said she was not Epstein’s defender.
“Ms. Ruemmler had no control over how Epstein characterized her or their interactions,” spokeswoman Jennifer Connelly told The Post.
“She was not his defender. She never advocated on his behalf with any third party — not Melinda Gates, not the press, not a court, not a government official.”
A source close to Melinda French Gates told The Post that she has never met Ruemmler.
The Post has sought comment from Bill Gates.
The latest tranche of Epstein emails released by the federal government has once again thrust Bill Gates and his ties to the disgraced pedophile into the spotlight.
The most explosive material consists of two unsent draft emails dated July 18, 2013 that Epstein appears to have written to himself and saved in his email account.
In those drafts, Epstein claims he facilitated sexual encounters for Gates and helped him obtain medication to conceal a sexually transmitted infection from his wife.
Epstein claimed in the unsent messages that Gates asked an adviser to help him obtain medication to treat STDs that he contracted as a result of “sex with Russian girls.”
The draft emails are unverified, uncorroborated and appear never to have been sent, according to CNN’s KFile.
Gates has not been accused of any criminal wrongdoing related to Epstein. He has categorically denied the allegations, calling them “false,” “absurd” and part of Epstein’s attempt to “entrap” and “defame” him.
“These claims are absolutely absurd and completely false,” a Gates spokesperson told CNN.
“The only thing these documents demonstrate is Epstein’s frustration that he did not have an ongoing relationship with Gates and the lengths he would go to entrap and defame.”
“While Mr. Gates acknowledges that meeting with Epstein was a serious error in judgment, he unequivocally denies any improper conduct related to Epstein and the horrible activities in which Epstein was involved.”
The spokesperson went on to tell CNN that “Mr. Gates never visited Epstein’s island, never attended parties with him, and had no involvement in any illegal activities associated with Epstein.”
Epstein alleged in a July 2013 draft email that Gates’ longtime science adviser, Boris Nikolic, had been drawn into what he described as conduct ranging from “the morally inappropriate” to potentially unlawful, including “helping Bill to get drugs” and facilitating what Epstein called “illegal trysts” with married women — claims that were never sent, remain unverified and have been flatly denied by Gates.
Melinda French Gates has cited her ex-husband’s relationship with Epstein as a factor that led to their divorce. Earlier this week, the software mogul’s ex-wife told NPR’s “Wild Card” podcast that the latest revelations dredged up “very painful times” from their 27-year marriage.
Ruemmler’s ties to Epstein reportedly stretched over roughly five years, from 2014 until shortly before his 2019 arrest, and went well beyond a fleeting professional overlap.
Emails and scheduling records show frequent contact, dozens of meetings and conversations that mixed legal, career and personal matters.
During that time, Epstein acted as a sounding board for Ruemmler on job prospects, including potential roles at Facebook and Alphabet, while weighing in on her personal life.
The relationship also included a steady stream of gifts and favors from Epstein, ranging from luxury handbags and clothing to travel help, Broadway tickets and other personal perks.
Ruemmler has consistently said that she knew Epstein in the context of her work as a high-profile white-collar defense lawyer, describing the relationship as rooted in her professional role and network.
She has said she did not represent him directly, did not advocate for him with courts or government officials, and had no knowledge of any ongoing criminal activity — adding that she regrets ever knowing him.
