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Billionaire retail mogul Les Wexner sat for nearly five hours of questioning before House Oversight Committee investigators on Wednesday, insisting he was duped by Jeffrey Epstein and had no knowledge of the convicted sex offender's crimes, but it was an unguarded moment from his own attorney that stole the spotlight when the full deposition video was released the following day.
About four and a half hours into the proceeding at Wexner's New Albany, Ohio, mansion, attorney Michael Levy leaned into the 88-year-old's ear and whispered what he apparently believed was a private aside: "I will kill you if you answer another question with more than five words, OK?" Both men laughed, and the deposition continued, but the moment, captured on a hot mic, quickly became the most talked-about exchange of the day. Levy did not respond to requests for comment.
The former Victoria's Secret owner, who built L Brands into a retail empire encompassing Victoria's Secret, Bath & Body Works, Abercrombie & Fitch, and Express, delivered a prepared statement in which he cast himself as a victim of Epstein's manipulation rather than a willing participant in any wrongdoing.
"I was naive, foolish, and gullible to put any trust in Jeffrey Epstein," Wexner told the committee. "He was a con man. And while I was conned, I have done nothing wrong and have nothing to hide. I completely and irrevocably cut ties with Epstein nearly twenty years ago when I learned that he was an abuser, a crook, and a liar."
Wexner described Epstein, who managed his wealth for decades beginning in the 1980s, as a "world Olympic con artist" and accused him of having stolen vast sums of his fortune before Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 to soliciting a minor for prostitution in Florida. Wexner testified that he severed the relationship in 2007 after learning of the investigation and discovering that Epstein had misappropriated funds from him and his family. He said a substantial portion of the money was eventually returned.
Throughout the deposition, Wexner was adamant that he "never witnessed nor had any knowledge of Epstein's criminal activity," and categorically denied any sexual contact with individuals introduced by Epstein or his associate Ghislaine Maxwell, including prominent accuser Virginia Giuffre.
Some of the most striking moments came when investigators pressed Wexner on specific details of his relationship with the disgraced financier. He acknowledged visiting Epstein's infamous Caribbean island once with his wife, dismissing it as "crummy" and "a pile of rocks." Democrats on the committee said Wexner claimed to have simply walked around with his family for about an hour.
Asked about a salacious note he penned for a book compiled ahead of Epstein's 50th birthday, in which he sketched a pair of breasts with the caption "Dear Jeffrey, I wanted to get you what you want, so here it is ... Your friend, Leslie," Wexner was dismissive. "He was a bachelor so I drew a pair of boobs," the lingerie magnate told investigators, describing it as an offhand joke.
Wexner also testified that he was unaware Epstein had ever stayed at a guesthouse on his sprawling New Albany estate, where accuser Maria Farmer has said she was abused by Epstein and Maxwell. Wexner maintained he only knew of Epstein staying at a nearby neighbor's residence. "I never met her, didn't know she was here, didn't know she was abused," he said of Farmer.
Wexner described his relationship with Epstein as strictly professional. "I don't think I ever went to lunch, or dinner, a movie or had a cup of coffee with Jeffrey," he said. "My focus was on my business and on community."
The committee also probed Wexner's knowledge of Epstein's connections to other powerful figures. Wexner said he could not recall ever being in the same room as Epstein and Donald Trump simultaneously, though he acknowledged they may have "coincidentally" crossed paths at a Victoria's Secret fashion show. "Jeffrey Epstein held [Trump] out as a friend," Wexner said, adding that he did not actually know whether the two were close. He noted that he found Trump's attendance at Victoria's Secret events "odd" because the now-president was not "engaged in fashion."
On the subject of former Prince Andrew, who was detained by British authorities on Thursday over allegations that he shared state secrets with Epstein, Wexner said they had only "one brief, like, two-sentence phone conversation" about aircraft transactions. "I never met Prince Andrew ... So I wasn't aware of anything," he said.
Federal prosecutors initially listed Wexner as a potential co-conspirator following Epstein's arrest in July 2019, but an FBI New York Field Office email included in Department of Justice files released in late January found "limited evidence regarding his involvement." Despite being named in what investigators described as millions of pages of investigative materials, Wexner testified that he has never been directly contacted by either the FBI or the Department of Justice.
While the committee released the deposition with what it called "no spin," saying "the American people deserve to see the testimony for themselves," the reaction along partisan lines was immediate and sharp. Five Democratic members of the committee held a press conference outside Wexner's mansion during a break in the proceedings, accusing him of facilitating Epstein's alleged sex trafficking operation.
"There is no single person that was more involved in providing Jeffrey Epstein with the financial support to commit his crimes than Les Wexner," said Ranking Member Robert Garcia of California. Democrats said their investigation showed Wexner funded much of Epstein's lifestyle, including paying him $1 billion. Epstein lived in Wexner's home, used his yachts and planes, according to Rep. Yassamin Ansari of Arizona, yet Wexner repeatedly told investigators he did not remember key details.
"It is almost inconceivable to be missing the amounts of money that are missing, and somehow Mr. Wexner has no idea," said Rep. Jasmine Crockett of Texas. Democrats also noted that no Republican members attended the deposition in person, sending only staff.
Republicans, meanwhile, have taken a more measured approach. Ohio House Speaker Matt Huffman called Epstein's crimes "horrible things" but said he would wait to see what the full investigation produces. U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi appeared to downplay the investigation altogether, pivoting to economic indicators. "The Dow is over 50,000 right now," Bondi said. "Americans' 401ks and retirement savings are booming. That's what we should be talking about."
Wexner is the fourth person to appear before the House Oversight Committee in its ongoing Epstein probe. The committee has scheduled depositions for former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton later this month, after both initially defied subpoenas and faced contempt proceedings.
Epstein, who had been granted power of attorney over Wexner's vast wealth and once occupied a Manhattan townhouse Wexner sold him, which later became one of the locations where federal authorities accused Epstein of abusing young women and underage girls, died in a Manhattan jail cell in August 2019 while awaiting trial on federal child sex-trafficking charges.
Meanwhile, politicians with financial ties to Wexner have begun distancing themselves. Several Ohio Republicans, including U.S. Rep. Mike Carey and State Treasurer Robert Sprague, announced they had donated Wexner-linked campaign contributions to charities focused on human trafficking prevention, homelessness, and food insecurity. U.S. Sen. Jon Husted's office said he would also be donating, without specifying a recipient.
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