Epstein’s Longtime Accountant Claims He Didn’t Know 'Nature' Or 'Extent' Of Abuse In House Testimony

Richard Kahn, a longtime accountant for convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, claimed that he didn’t previously grasp the full scope of the late financier’s abuse during a closed-door deposition before the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday.

“I was not aware of the nature or extent of Epstein’s abuse of so many women until after Epstein’s death,” Kahn said, according to prepared remarks obtained by ABC News. “However, it pains me to think, and I deeply regret, that I may have unknowingly assisted Epstein in any way.”

“Had I learned of any of his horrific behavior, I would have quit work immediately,” he reportedly added. 

A co-executor of Epstein’s estate, Kahn has faced significant scrutiny for his ties to the late sex predator and his role in overseeing the money manager’s finances for more than 10 years. Survivors have previously accused Kahn and Epstein’s attorney, Darren Indyke, of facilitating and concealing Epstein’s illegal conduct. Both have denied any wrongdoing.

Indyke is also poised to appear for a closed-door deposition with the oversight panel next week. 

Kahn said on Wednesday that he tracked Epstein’s gifts, but “did not see them as red flags for abuse or trafficking,” and noted that they comprised a small fraction of his spending. Kahn also said he “had no role in setting up any of Epstein’s companies,” and did not see them as “improper or suspicious.”

House Oversight Chair James Comer (Republican, Kentucky) said that Kahn wasn’t being accused of wrongdoing in remarks ahead of the deposition on Wednesday. He also noted that there was evidence of 64 business entities associated with Epstein and that there was “a lot of money that was being transferred around.” 

Democrats met Kahn’s Wednesday statements with scepticism, criticising his vague responses to their inquiries. 

“Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking ring would not have been possible without Richard Kahn, who managed Epstein’s money for years, authorized payments, including payments to victims and survivors,” Rep. James Walkinshaw (Democrat, Virginia) claimed to reporters. 

“Today we’ve heard from Mr. Kahn a lot of inability to recall, inability to recall emails, messages, activities he was involved in,” said Walkinshaw. “From my perspective, I do not find it credible that he had no knowledge of Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes. If he was ignorant of Epstein’s crimes, he was willfully ignorant of those crimes.”

Kahn also shed light on how Epstein had allegedly obtained his wealth.

According to Comer, Kahn was “under the impression” that Epstein made his money as a tax adviser and financial planner. Additionally, the accountant named five clients who had made significant transactions to Epstein, Comer said. 

Those individuals included businessman Les Wexner, hedge fund manager Glenn Dubin, investor and software engineer Steven Sinofsky and investor Leon Black, according to Comer. Kahn also named members of the Rothschild family, Comer said. 

Politico reached out to the named individuals, several of whom pushed back on Kahn’s reported claims.  

Wexner had previously sat for a deposition with House lawmakers and claimed that he had no knowledge of Epstein’s crimes. A spokesperson for him told the publication that he had not transferred money to Epstein, but that he had retained and paid the financier for “wealth management services.”

A spokesperson for Black, whom the House panel has also sought an interview with, told Politico that Epstein had been hired “for tax and estate planning work.”

A spokesperson for Dubin, meanwhile, told the publication that he was not an Epstein client, while Sinofsky declined to comment. A spokesperson for the Edmond de Rothschild bank did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 

Comer also noted that Kahn testified that he had not seen Epstein engage in any transactions with President Donald Trump or members of his family.