Billionaire Elon Musk and Prince Andrew, Duke of York, have been named in new files released by US Congressional Democrats that relate to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, the BBC has reported.
Musk, however, has denied the claims. "This is false," he wrote in a post on X.
Prince Andrew is a member of the British royal family. He is the third child and second son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and a younger brother of King Charles III.
The BBC reported that the files turned over to the House Oversight Committee by the Epstein estate appear to show Musk had been invited to Epstein’s island in December 2014. One line in the records dated 6 December 2014 reads: “Reminder: Elon Musk to island Dec. 6 (is this still happening?).” Musk has also previously been quoted as saying he was invited to the island but declined.
Musk in 2019 told NBC News that Epstein “tried repeatedly” but he declined. He acknowledged visiting Epstein’s New York home once but said he did not know him well, calling him “obviously a creep.”
Musk has also appeared in a widely circulated photo with Epstein’s convicted co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell, which he said was a “photobomb” at a Vanity Fair party.
Separately, the BBC said a manifest for a flight on 12 May 2000 names the Duke of York among the passengers on a flight from Teterboro, New Jersey, to West Palm Beach, Florida, with Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell. Maxwell was convicted in 2021 of conspiring with Epstein to traffic girls.
The BBC reports that one heavily redacted ledger includes two references to payments for massages for an “Andrew” in February and May 2000. While palace records, photographs, and press reports from the time indicate Prince Andrew had travelled to the US around the dates noted in the documents, it is not clear whether the “Andrew” referred to in the ledger is the Duke of York.
The report says that On 11 May 2000, Buckingham Palace said on its website that Prince Andrew had flown to New York to attend a reception for the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, and that he returned to the UK on 15 May.
In 2022, late Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein's most prominent accusers and Prince Andrew reached an out-of-court civil settlement in the US over Giuffre’s claims that Andrew sexually abused her when she was 17. The terms of the agreement were not publicly disclosed, but Andrew agreed to make a substantial donation to a charity supporting victims’ rights, and both parties agreed to bear their own legal costs.
In a statement, Andrew expressed regret for his association with Jeffrey Epstein, acknowledged Giuffre’s suffering as a victim, and said he had never intended to malign her character. The settlement ended the lawsuit without any admission of liability, and a court will file a dismissal once Giuffre confirms receipt of the agreed payment.
According to the BBC, the partial records form the third batch of documents produced by Epstein’s estate and include phone message logs, copies of flight logs and manifests, copies of financial ledgers, and Epstein’s daily schedule. In addition to Musk and Prince Andrew, the files also contain the names of other prominent figures such as internet entrepreneur Peter Thiel and Steve Bannon, a former adviser to US President Donald Trump.
One entry refers to a planned lunch with Thiel in November 2017, another mentions a planned breakfast with Bannon on 17 February 2019, and the files also note tentative plans for a breakfast party with Microsoft founder Bill Gates in December 2014. In 2022, Gates had reportedly told the BBC that meeting Epstein had been a “mistake.”
The BBC also noted that it is not suggested that those mentioned in the files were aware of the alleged criminal activity for which Epstein was later arrested.
Epstein died by suicide in a New York jail cell in August 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. In 2008, he had reached a plea deal with prosecutors after the parents of a 14-year-old girl told police in Florida that Epstein had molested their daughter at his Palm Beach home. He was arrested again in July 2019 on sex trafficking charges.
The BBC also reports that Sara Guerrero, spokeswoman for the Democrats on the House Oversight Committee, urged US Attorney General Pam Bondi to release more files related to Epstein. “It should be clear to every American that Jeffrey Epstein was friends with some of the most powerful and wealthiest men in the world,” she said. “Every new document produced provides new information as we work to bring justice for the survivors and victims.”
Republicans on the committee accused Democrats of “putting politics over victims” and said they would release the full set of documents soon.